357. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the annual saving to the Exchequer if the pay of all ministerial special advisers was capped in his Department at the first point of the principal officer grade. [30909/14]

Special Adviser appointments were undertaken in accordance with the Instructions on Ministerial Appointments for the 31st Dáil and the Guidelines on Staffing of Ministerial Offices of March 2011. The Guidelines provide for Special Advisers to be placed on the Principal Officer (standard) scale in line with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform Circulars on the matter. If the salaries of my Special Advisers and those of my colleague Minister of State O'Sullivan were capped at the first point of the Principal Officer Scale, the gross annual savings would amount to €35,758 per annum.