Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 258: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if public health and community medicine doctors are discriminated against in interviews for promotion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19602/05]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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Appointments to Health Service Executive posts in public health medicine are made through the Public Appointments Service. The Public Appointments Service was established in October 2004.

The Public Appointments Service is the centralised provider of recruitment, assessment and selection services for the Civil Service. It also provides recruitment and related human resource advisory services to local authorities, health boards, the Garda Síochána and other public bodies.

The Public Appointments Service is committed, in partnership with its clients, to compete successfully in the labour market and to provide excellent recruitment and selection services, based on merit and equality, which support and facilitate the delivery of public services.

The Public Appointments Service is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in its recruitment practices and selection methods. The Civil Service, as an employer, pursues an active policy of non-discrimination on grounds of sex or martial status.

The Public Appointments Service is committed to the principles of best recruitment practice. Fairness and impartiality are absolute essential values to which it adheres as it strives to ensure that the best candidate for a vacancy is selected to fill the position. All candidates for positions recruited by the Public Appointments Service are assessed solely on their merits and against the requirements for the particular job.

As a once-off initiative, and in accordance with the Public Health Doctors Agreement 2003, a number of public health medicine posts were set aside to be filled by internal promotion within the Health Service Executive. These posts could only be filled by candidates with the required qualifications, experience and expertise. As the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.