Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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Question 261: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Valuation Office will be one of the areas of the public sector that will see targeted recruitment this year in view of the large volume of work that has to be done in relation to the revaluations currently being undertaken by the office; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4766/12]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The Government is committed to reducing Public Service numbers to 282,500 by 2015. Given the importance of meeting this challenging numbers target, any recruitment will be limited and targeted towards areas of most need. It is not the general policy to comment on specific offices until decisions on business cases have been made.

I reiterate what I have stated previously to the Deputy, that the Commissioner of Valuation is examining options to speed up the valuation process, including the introduction of a Self Assessment approach to valuation, accompanied by appropriate controls, and outsourcing some of the work. As well as helping to speed up the national programme, an element of outsourcing, if it proves practicable, would allow comparison of the Valuation Office productivity and costs with those in the private sector.

The enabling provisions to allow for these changes are included in proposals for amending legislation which were approved by Government on 6th December, 2011 and are now with the Attorney General's Office for drafting of the proposed Valuation (Amendment) Bill. Preparatory work is continuing in drawing up the detailed schemes and, subject to the enactment of the legislation and availability of the necessary resources, I understand that the intention would be to initiate pilot revaluations using the self-assessment and outsourcing options in two local authority areas.

As a further means of speeding up the revaluation programme generally and to accelerate the necessary capture of data on properties throughout the country, in advance of the roll-out to particular areas, a dedicated data-capture unit is being set up. The Valuation Office is also looking for applicants under the JobBridge scheme being sponsored by the Department of Social Protection.