Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The Public Service Agreement 2010-2014 contains a commitment "to introduce significantly improved performance management across all Public Service areas, and following the current review, the Performance Management and Development System will be strengthened with promotion and incremental progression linked in all cases to performance and the implementation of appropriate systems to address under-performance, including, where appropriate, training or, where necessary, through disciplinary procedures". In the civil service work is well under way on achieving this goal. The 2010 Evaluation of PMDS has been completed. Negotiations with the Unions have commenced in relation to how the PMDS can be strengthened.

Performance management in the civil service has been in place for a number of years and is already linked to promotion and to incremental progression and the systems in place to address underperformance are now being assessed.

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The Department employs individuals on temporary contract from time to time for a range of reasons, such as the provision of term time cover, staff on fixed purpose contracts or political appointees such as Special Advisors or Personal Assistants. The following table sets out the number of persons employed on temporary contracts and their associated costs in 2009 and 2010.

There is one staff member who has been previously employed in the public service. I am satisfied that the employment of these staff on short term and temporary contracts is necessary for the work of the Department.