The civil service (an stát-sheirbhís in Irish) of the Republic of Ireland consists of two broad components, the Civil Service of the Government and the Civil Service of the State. Whilst these two components are largely theoretical they do have some fundemental operational differences.

Civil Service

Organisational structure of the civil service showing junior and senior grades.

All civil servants is expected to be impartial, and to act within the law. A member of the civil service must maintain political impartiality and all grades must not seek nomination or election to the European Parliament or Houses of the Oireachtas. Certain grades are also barred from seeking nomination or election to local authorities. The European Parliament is the parliamentary body of the European Union (EU), directly elected by EU citizens once every five years. ... The Houses of the Oireachtas is the official and constitutionally correct name for the two Houses of Parliament of Ireland - Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (The Senate). ... Local government in the Republic of Ireland is governed by the Local Government Act, 2001, which established a two-tier structure of local government. ...

Civil servants above the clerical grade must not take part in public debate outside their normal official duties. For instance contributing to newspapers, radio, or television would be considered a violation of this principal. All civil servants, including those on career break or retirement are subject to the Official Secrets Act 1963, as amended, or for instance where they comply with a Freedom of Information Act, 1997 request. Nearly sixty countries around the world have implemented some form of freedom of information legislation, which sets rules on governmental secrecy. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Civil servants must be not take part in anything that may involve a conflict of interest, and if they seek outside work must bring it to the attention of their line manager who may refuse the request. Civil servant grades and positions defined as "designated positions" under the Ethics in Public Office Acts must make a disclosure of interests where they have a relevent interest. A conflict of interest is a situation in which someone in a position of trust, such as a lawyer, a politician, or an executive or director of a corporation, has competing professional and/or personal interests. ...

One can join the civil service as a Clerical Officer which is the lowest grade or as an Executive Officer. These positions are recruited openly by the Public Appointments Service (formerly the Civil Service and Local Appointments Commission). All other civil service grades are opened to existing civil servants. It has become practice in recent times for some outside advisors to also work in government departments, such as 'programme managers', however the conditions and renumeration of such individuals varies with government.

Civil Service of the Government

The Civil Service of the Government (Stát-Sheirbhís an Rialtais in Irish) is the body of civil servants which advise and carry out the work of the Government. Each minister is responsible for a Department of State, of which there are fifteen (one for each assigned portfolio). As well as this, there may also be a number of Ministers of State assigned to a department. The permanent head of a department is known as the Secretary-General (equivalent to a Permanent Secretary in the British Civil Service). The head of the civil service is the Secretary-General to the Government, who is also Secretary-General of the Department of the Taoiseach. The Irish Government contains a number of departments or ministries, known in the Republic of Ireland as a Department of State. ... The civil service of the United Kingdom is the permanent bureaucracy that supports the political Government responsible to the Sovereign, the House of Commons and the House of Lords, in administering the United Kingdom. ...

The Civil Service of the Government is the direct decendent of the Civil Service of the Government of Saorstát Eireann, as provided for in Article 56, of the Constitution of Ireland; one of the Transitory Provision intended to ensure continuance of institutions of the Irish Free State. The Constitution of Ireland is the founding legal document of the state known today as the Republic of Ireland. ... The Irish Free State (Irish: Saorstát Éireann) was (1922–1937) the name of the state comprising the 26 of Irelands 32 counties which were separated from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland under the Irish Free State Agreement (or Anglo-Irish Treaty) signed by British...

Civil Service of the State

The Civil Service of the State (Stát-Sheirbhís an Stáit in Irish) is a relatively small component of the overall civil service, and its members are expected to be absolutely independent of the government, in addition to normal political independence which is expected.

Civil servants who work in the the offices of the Comptroller and Auditor-General, Courts Service of Ireland, Director of Public Prosecutions, Garda Síochána Complaints Board, Houses of the Oireachtas, Information Commissioner and Ombudsman are all considered to be part of the Civil Service of the State. Certain other offices are also prescribed under the Civil Service of the State. The courts system in the Republic of Ireland consists of the Supreme Court, the High Court and a number of lower courts. ... The Director of Public Prosecutions is the officer charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several jurisdictions around the world. ... A member of the motorcycle unit of the Garda Síochána. ... The Houses of the Oireachtas is the official and constitutionally correct name for the two Houses of Parliament of Ireland - Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (The Senate). ... Ireland The Office of the Information Commissioner was set up under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act, 1997, which came into effect in April 1998. ... Look up Ombudsman on Wiktionary, the free dictionary An ombudsman is an official, usually but not always appointed by the government, who is charged with representing the interests of the public by investigating and addressing complaints reported by individual citizens. ...

References

• Civil Service Code of Standards and Behaviour, Standards in Public Office Commission, Dublin, February 2005.
• Guidelines on Compliance with the Provisions of the Ethics in Public Office Acts 1995 and 2001, Standards in Public Office Commission, Dublin, June 2005.

External link

• Public Appointments Service
• Commission for Public Service Appointments