Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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53. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the date on which the current panel for the recruitment of third secretaries in his Department was formed; when the panel will expire; the number of persons listed on the current panel and the number appointed from the panel; when a new panel will be formed to generate a new list of persons to be called to become third secretary; if applications for inclusion on the panel will be publicly advertised through the Public Appointments Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26473/13]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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The recruitment of Third Secretaries is conducted on behalf of my Department by the Public Appointments Service (PAS). The approval of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is required before a competition can be held. Competitions are advertised through the PAS website which includes an automatic e-mail alert service for potential candidates. The most recent competition was held in the second half of 2008 when a panel of 30 qualified candidates was put in place. Since then, a total of 14 appointments have been made, the last of which occurred in December 2010 and involved the person who secured 16th place in the 2008 competition. The Deputy will be aware that the moratorium on recruitment to the civil service introduced in 2009 remains in force, and of the reasons for it. Nevertheless, my Department is in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform about the urgent need to hold a Third Secretary competition later this year in order to fill a number of existing and emerging vacancies in the grade at home and abroad.