Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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339. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the current average age of permanent staff employed within his Department;and the agencies under his Department's remit; the way this varies from the end of 2008 and 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29202/15]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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In response to the Deputy's question the following table outlines the current average age of staff in my Department and the bodies under my aegis including variations from 2008 and 2011. 

** No comparable information available

I am aware of the age profile of staff across my Department and acknowledge that potential challenges do exist for the years ahead in terms of retirements and the associated loss of corporate knowledge and experience. This is an issue that is already being monitored by management in my Department and steps have already been taken to mitigate any risk to operational effectiveness. 

I was able to announce an end to the moratorium on recruitment and promotion in the public service as part of Budget 2015 and this will give my Department greater flexibility around recruitment in the years ahead which will help us to manage the transition as staff retire.  Workforce planning is now firmly established as a key element of the Department's HR processes. The primary purpose of workforce planning is to support senior management in ensuring we have the right number of people, with the right skills in the right place at the right time. This process will ensure that a more proactive approach is taken to addressing workforce needs in the years ahead and as financial circumstances continue to improve my department will be able to recruit new staff with the skillsets that we require to help us meet our ambitious expenditure and reform objectives.