asked the Minister for the Public Service if he will outline in the form of a tabular statement (a) the number of staff employed in the public service, (b) the names of the different bodies over which his Department have responsibility, (c) the bodies over which his Department have (i) direct responsibility and (ii) indirect responsibility and (d) the total expenditure incurred by his Department in respect of all of the staff employed, together with the cost of running his Department in each year 1977, 1978 and 1979.

On the basis that (a) of the Deputy's question relates to the number of staff employed in the Department of the Public Service, the information requested by him is set out in a tabular statement which, with the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to circulate with the Official Report.

Following is the statement: