Written answers

Tuesday, 19 November 2013

Department of Environment, Community and Local Government

Irish Water Staff

Photo of Barry CowenBarry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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452. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the total number of staff currently employed by Irish Water and the estimated total staff when its reaches full capacity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49160/13]

Photo of Barry CowenBarry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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454. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of local authority and Civil Service staff serving secondments in Irish Water and the transition board; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49162/13]

Photo of Fergus O'DowdFergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 452 and 454 together.

The Water Services Act 2013 which provided for the establishment of Irish Water as a subsidiary of Bórd Gáis Éireann to be formed and registered under the Companies Act. Irish Water is currently recruiting to build up the internal capabilities required within the organisation and the numbers of staff employed is an operational matter for the organisation. It was agreed by the Steering Group for the Water Sector Reform programme that, to ensure skills within the sector were fully availed of in building up the new organisation, competitions for positions in asset management, capital delivery and operations would be restricted to staff in the partner organisations i.e. Bord Gáis Éireann, local authorities and my Department in the first instance. Open competitions are held for all other positions and details of these are available on Irish Water’s website Data supplied by Irish Water indicates that at present 183 staff have been recruited to the Irish Water organisation with 103 having taken up duty and 80 due to start.

Bórd Gáis has put in place appropriate programme management arrangements to establish Irish Water, to prepare for the transfer of assets, liabilities and functions from local authorities from 1 January 2014, provide for customer service and billing and implement the domestic water metering programme. As part of this programme, there are currently 80 people seconded from Local Authorities and 4 seconded from my Department, on the Irish Water Programme, 44 of whom are involved in the Metering Programme. The Water Services Transition Office is currently staffed by 15.5 people seconded from Local Authorities.

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