Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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Question 20: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number of posts for external application he proposes to advertise in 2007 in the different sections of his Department. [39531/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Vacancies in the Department are, in general, filled through the Public Appointments Service (PAS), which is the central recruiting body for the whole of the Civil Service. Competitions for positions within the Civil Service are advertised by the PAS in the recruitment pages of the national newspapers.

The Department's graduate recruitment programme for posts at the diplomatic grade of Third Secretary is also operated by the PAS. Candidates must have a first or second class honours degree in any discipline or have qualified as a Solicitor or Barrister. A new Third Secretary recruitment competition will be advertised by the PAS in early 2007. Third Secretaries will be appointed from this competition to fill vacancies arising and it is expected that the first of them will take up duty in the Department next summer.

The Department also recruits development specialists to work at headquarters and in missions overseas to provide specialist input to its overseas aid programme. As soon as ongoing discussions around the specialists' terms and conditions of employment are successfully completed, the Department, through the PAS, intends to recruit additional specialist staff.

This year, the Department initiated a pilot scheme which offers six internships for recent graduates who hope to make a career in international development aid. The internships, which are for eight months, are designed to complement academic and professional knowledge by providing practical experience and an understanding of the realities of international development cooperation. Recruitment has just ended for the coming year. The scheme will be assessed at the end of the internships before a decision is taken on whether to recruit interns next year.

In addition, the Department annually recruits four Stagiaires to work for up to twelve months in its Legal and Political Divisions. The posts are normally advertised in the national newspapers in April or May of each year respectively. In each case, successful candidates are placed on a panel following a competitive interview process.

Finally, the Department from time to time advertises for Services Officer, Nightwatchperson and Cleaner positions through the FAS website. Panels are formed from which vacancies in these grades are filled. A competition for Services Officer and Nightwatchperson is underway at present. The panel, which will be formed arising from this competition, will run until 2008. A competition for Cleaner positions will be advertised through FAS in the early months of next year.