Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of promotions made in his Department to principal officer higher scale, principal officer standard scale, assistant principal officer higher scale, assistant principal officer standard scale, higher executive officer scale, executive office scale and staff officer scale; the total for all of his Department; if he will provide a breakdown for for 2009, 2010, 2011 and to date in 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50977/12]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Promotions in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have been relatively few since the introduction of the moratorium by the Government with effect from 27 March 2009, with any exceptions requiring the specific approval of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. In the period since then the Department’s core staffing decreased by approximately 190, or about 12%. Predictably, senior levels were most severely affected and, in the circumstances, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform recently approved the filling of some of the critical gaps that had arisen at these levels, particularly since the end of the pensions “grace period” on 29 February 2012. In the period under reference there have also been a number of up-gradings to higher scales in line with the terms of local bargaining agreements between various unions and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform under the Programme for Competitiveness and Work, 1994-1997. Full details are set out in the following table. In each case, the rules of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform governing pay-on-promotion were followed in determining the new scale point and increment date.

2009 Promotions

2009 Up-Grades

2010 Promotions

2010 Up-Grades

2011 Promotions

2011 Up-Grades

2012 Promotions

2012 Up-Grades