Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)
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Question 126: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on the fact that more than half of all the staff cut from the Health Service Executive, HSE, in 2009 came from the mental health services despite the fact that they only represent 9% of the HSE's workforce; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40393/10]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Independent)
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The Government has made clear that a critical part of its strategy to restore the public finances is to achieve sustainability in the cost of delivering public services relative to State revenues. To help achieve this goal, it will be necessary to restructure and reorganise the public service and to reduce public service numbers over the coming years. This requires that the moratorium on recruitment and promotion in the health service will continue to apply until the numbers have fallen to the level set out in the Employment Control Framework for the health sector. The Framework for 2010-2012 gives effect to the Government decision on employment policy in the public sector and provides that there will be a net reduction in employment to 2012. This includes a target reduction in numbers in 2010 to achieve the overall reduction of 6,000 from March 2009 to the end 2012 and consequential pay roll savings. Based on numbers reductions already achieved in 2009, the net target reduction to end 2012 is 4,560 WTE (or 1,520 per annum). While there is provision in the HSE's Employment Control Framework for some exemptions and exceptions these are limited because of the need to achieve the required payroll savings.

Under the ECF 2010-2012 grades exempted from the moratorium/special provisions include: clinical Psychologist, Behavioural Therapist, Counsellor – replacement posts and up to 230 in addition to the Dec 09 outturn; and up to 100 Psychiatric Nurses vacancies where they are required to support the implementation of A Vision for Change. The HSE's Health Service Personnel Census indicates that the change in the numbers employed, in the public health service of 1,272 wholetime equivalents, between end 2008 and end 2009 by grade category is as follows:

The census also indicates that between year end 2008 and year end 2009, the number of mental health nurses decreased by 4% but the number of clinical psychologists increased by 3.5%. It is clear, therefore, that the Deputy's assertion that half of the reduction of health service staffing in 2009 came from the mental health services is incorrect. As I have already outlined, the target reductions in the Employment Control Framework are necessary to restructure the public service and to reduce public service numbers, and to support the Government's strategy to restore the public finances.