Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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1180. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the salaries and expenses paid to advisers, Ministers and-or Ministers of State in his Department in 2020, 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form. [19747/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Under the terms of the “Guidelines for Ministerial Appointments to the 33^rdDáil” the salary scale for Special Adviser to a Minister is the same as the Civil Service Principal Officer pay scale whereas the pay scale for Special Adviser to a Minister of State is equivalent to the Assistant Principal Officer scale. In the event an appointee is a retired Civil Servant pension abatement applies. 

The following tables contain the information requested by the Deputy.

Minister Harris:

Minister Collins, T.D. 

I have two Special Advisers. In 2021, one advisor left in March and was replaced in April.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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1181. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will outline all of the secondment arrangements within his Department; the conditions related to such secondments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19870/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Department facilitates secondments from organisations in the public service/civil service, as required, to meet specific business requirements. In addition, this Department facilitates secondments of officials to other organisations, often in the further and higher education sector, as a result of their particular skillsets, to meet specific business needs and/or to facilitate career development opportunities.

Details in relation to staff on secondment to and from the Department are set out in the attached tabular statement.

There are 5 staff on secondment to my Department. The costs in respect of 4 of these are met by my Department. The cost associated with 1 of these is met by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), an aegis body of my Department, as part of the SFI Public Service Fellowship Programme.

The costs associated with the secondment of the 3 staff seconded out from my Department to other organisations are met by the receiving organisations.

In terms of the conditions attached to secondments, a seconded member of staff continues to be treated as a staff member of their parent organisation for the purposes of internal promotion competitions, pay and progression, incremental credit (subject to satisfactory performance), reckonable service, and will also continue to be a member of their parent organisation’s pension scheme and pay all contributions on the basis of this membership.