Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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Question 330: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the details of any organisation under his Department that has informed him of staffing difficulties which may impinge upon its ability to effectively oversee the spending of public funds; and his views regarding same. [28369/11]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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Question 331: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will outline the organisations under his Department for which an employment control framework, ECF, has been agreed; the current numbers they have in place; if they have been waiting more than one month to receive sanction to proceed to fill or retain any positions in spite of such positions falling below the agreed ECF ceiling. [28385/11]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 330 and 331 together.

Due to the severe economic downturn the Government introduced a moratorium on recruitment and promotion across the public sector in March 2009. Under the terms of the Government's decision no public service post, however arising, may be filled by recruitment, promotion, or payment of an allowance for the performance of duties at a higher grade. My Department received a delegated sanction from the Department of Finance in August 2009 for implementation of the moratorium across all local authorities. This is on condition that the overall staffing levels in the sector are reduced further.

In relation to the Department's Agencies all requests for sanction to recruit or promote must be examined by my Department in the first instance and suitable requests are then forwarded to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform requesting sanction. Sanction is granted only in exceptional circumstances under the Moratorium. One such request is currently with that Department.

My Department works very closely with local authorities and Agencies to ensure that critical posts are filled while overall numbers are reduced in accordance with the ECF targets and budgetary constraints. Local authorities have shed 6,900 whole time equivalent (wte) posts since June 2008. In the most recent staffing returns, up to end September 2011, there are 30,329 whole time equivalent staff across local authorities. The local authority sector is operating within its Employment Control Framework and is on track to reach the target of 30,000 wte by 2013. The overall end 2011 ECF target for Agencies under the aegis of my Department is 820 Whole Time Equivalents (WTE). This is to reduce to 740 WTE by end 2014. Each Agency has been issued with an ECF as follows:

The difference between the ECFs issued (819 WTE), and the overall ceiling of 820 WTE, arises from the recent change in my Department's responsibilities where the Heritage Council moved to the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the Western Development Commission moved to my Department.