Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 47: To ask the Taoiseach the numbers of persons employed by the Central Statistics Office to implement the enumeration of census 2011; of these, the number of persons that were on the live register; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6329/11]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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A total of 4,854 people are currently employed as census enumerators (engaged in a part-time capacity) to carry out the field work on the 2011 census. All of the recruitment for the census field operation has been 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.

On taking up employment as enumerators, 3,077 people indicated that they were not in employment and 1,777 indicated some form of other employment. However it is important to note that all applicants for enumerator positions were assessed at interview on their availability for census work (given the need to make frequent calls to households at different times of the day); those in full-time work were assessed as having low availability and so would be unlikely to be offered enumerator positions ahead of other suitably qualified candidates. It is more likely that those in existing employment are working part-time elsewhere. It was not open to the CSO to exclude people on this basis. Out of the total of 4,854 enumerators, 740 indicated at interview that they were on the Live Register representing 15% of all enumerators.