Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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11. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the reductions in public service staff numbers under each Government Department heading since March 2011. [16618/14]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The detailed information the Deputy asks about is available on my Department's web site, at .  Here the Deputy will find comprehensive data on all Government Departments, including staffing levels and expenditure - both pay and non-pay.  This relatively new information resource is updated on a quarterly basis and provides a comprehensive profile of staffing levels and public expenditure as far back as 1980.

The Deputy will see from the databank information that, in overall terms, the public service has reduced in size from 303,457 whole time equivalents in the first quarter of  2011 to 287,780 whole time equivalents at the end of 2013.  This is equivalent to a reduction of 5% across the system.  In the course of this downsizing, Government has ensured the prioritisation of key posts and services and has supported  recruitment into priority vacancies across key areas of the public service.  In Education, for example,  which has reduced in overall terms by 2% since the beginning of 2011, teaching posts have been prioritised and indeed additional SNAs and resource teachers have been provided for.  The Deputy will also know that new Garda are being recruited, in addition to the recruitment and training up of Garda reserves. 

It is important to recognise that the reduction in the size of the Public Service since 2011  and the resultant savings achieved were necessary, given our fiscal position, but they have also served to drive real reform in the way public services are delivered.