Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 67: To ask the Taoiseach the reason the unemployed were not given priority for census jobs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5581/11]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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All of the recruitment for the census field operation is carried out by the CSO under licence by the Commission for Public Service Appointments and complies with their strict recruitment principles regarding fairness, equality, openness and transparency.

In making preparations for the recruitment of enumerators for the census, the possibility of giving preference to persons on the Live Register was actively examined by the CSO. However, in light of the need to conduct this recruitment within the strict recruitment principles that apply to all public sector appointments, in practice it has not been open to the CSO to discriminate in favour of any one group of people over another, be they on the Live Register or otherwise.

In selecting candidates for the positions of census enumerator, the CSO called over 15,500 people to interview and all applicants were assessed on the basis of their skills, abilities, and suitability for the post in question. The jobs were ultimately offered to the most qualified candidates. In excess of 700 census enumerators now working on the census indicated they were on the Live Register.