Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 295: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the action taken by her predecessor in response to calls from the Opposition at the time to provide, by way of redeployment, sufficient staff to meet the growing number of applications for social welfare payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15608/11]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 332: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the total number of extra staff made available to her in each of the past five years to date in 2011 to enable expeditious process of various social welfare claims; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15609/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 295 and 332 together.

Since May 2008, some 825 posts have been assigned to the Department of Social Protection to fill critical staff vacancies and additional posts approved to deal with the significant increase in claims for the schemes operated by the Department.

The majority of these posts have been sourced through the lateral transfer and redeployment of staff from within the Department and from other Government Departments. Staffing needs are kept under constant review to ensure that best use is made of all available resources.

The table shows the number of posts assigned per year since May 2008.