Mary Ann O'Brien (Independent)

I will start shouting about it tomorrow. We are all aware of the problems in the public service arising from the moratorium on recruitment. I have encountered cases of public service organisations taking on JobBridge interns for six months, only to find that they had sufficient work to continue the internship for a further three months. This is a wonderful experience for the intern. The Department will probably tweak the scheme after the first year. I ask the Minister not to change the position regarding the private sector but to give the public service greater flexibility in this regard. I sit on the audit committee of Kildare County Council. Given the evolution and changes under way in local and national government, it is important to reform and take different approaches. It is in that spirit that I ask the Minister to provide for a little more flexibility in the scheme. One does not always know in advance if one has nine months' work for a person.