Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Those are fair points. The Senator should realise that if the advertising of vacancies is advanced there will be a surge in the number of vacant posts in the short term. If the Senator is tracking the number of vacant posts he will, by his own suggestion, see a big increase in them. Notwithstanding that, it is probably a good idea to plan and anticipate workforce planning. I will alert the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, to the Senator's concern that the vacancy data is only being compiled and that efficient workplace planning would require anticipation of these posts arising in the future. It is not in dispute that there is a problem with recruitment and the fact of small numbers of applicants for vacancies is the reason the considerable efforts of Professor MacCraith and the consultant group has been put in place.