Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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70. To ask the Minister for Finance the number of persons leaving the Central Bank that were put on gardening leave in each of the years 2010 to 2016, and to date in 2017; the rules regarding placing a person on gardening leave; the period of gardening leave time assigned in each case; the cost to the Central Bank of placing each person on gardening leave; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26397/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am informed by the Central Bank that one employee was placed on garden leave in 2017 for a duration of 4.75 months. Arising from the seniority of the post, the cost of the garden leave is €122,000 inclusive of payment for untaken annual leave which was due and is being taken during this period. 

Garden leave is provided for in contracts of employment for key roles to enable the creation of a ‘cooling off’ period where appropriate. A decision to place an employee on garden leave is determined by the circumstances, typically where there is a potential or perceived potential conflict of interest arising between the employee’s current role and the post-employment activity they have communicated they intend to undertake.  

In the case of two other employees in 2016 and one employee in 2013, who were leaving their employment to take up roles in financial services, ‘cooling off’ periods were put in place. These included a combination of restricting their duties in their role and assigning them to other duties for the duration of their notice periods.  The costs are more difficult to calculate in these cases, as they spent time carrying out other duties which eliminated or minimised the risk of potential or perceived post-employment conflicts.