Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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543. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of politically appointed staff working in her Department including the names, roles and salaries of each staff member; in the case of special advisers, their qualifications and experience relevant to their roles; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22726/16]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Details are provided below regarding staff paid from my Department’s Vote whose appointments are coterminous with my term of office as Minister or coterminous with the terms of office of the two Ministers of State at my Department.

In relation to my two special advisers, both have Degrees in Journalism and extensive experience relevant to their role and both are paid in accordance with the standard arrangements put in place by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. One, who began in the role this year, is paid at the first point of the Principal Officer (Standard Scale) and the other, who began in the role in August 2014, has progressed to the second point of the Principal Officer (Standard Scale). Civilian Drivers are paid on a single-point scale, without incremental progression.

For completeness, I wish to advise that I and each of the two Ministers of State at my Department are also provided with a Personal Secretary and a Personal Assistant. With effect from the election of the 32nd Dáil, Personal Secretaries and Personal Assistants of officeholders are paid by the Houses of the Oireachtas as Secretarial Assistants and Parliamentary Assistants, respectively, under the Scheme for Secretarial Assistance.

Office of the Minster for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

Office of the Minister for State (Regional Economic Development)

Office of the Minister for State (Gaeltacht)