§ Mr. William Rossasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is now the length of time taken to process an application for jobs in the Civil Service in Northern Ireland; and what were the periods in each of the last five years.
§ Mr. John PattenDetailed figures are not available and could be compiled only at disproportionate cost, I understand from the Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland, that they are not aware of any significant change in processing applications in recent years, despite large increases in the numbers of applicants.
The time taken to process an application varies. In special competitions held to fill known vacancies in 191W specific areas, the commissioners aim to have all stages between the close of applications and the issue of letters of appointment completed within eight weeks. In more standard competitions, for example for clerical posts, where the demand for staff is expected to be continuous, the first batch of appointments may be made within one month of the competition closing. But, because of the large numbers of candidates who are attracted by such competitions, a much longer period is needed to process all the applications.