To ask the Minister of Finance for his assessment of the impact that the delay in recruiting Administrative Officers for the Northern Ireland Civil Service will have on overall morale among existing staff.

Departments can put temporary arrangements in place to fill vacancies such as utilising agency staff, thereby minimising impact.

There are several stages in the recruitment process that need to be completed before successful applicants are notified. The large number of candidates for this AO competition resulted in some delay in issuing results to successful candidates. All stages have now been completed, and the paperwork is being finalised.

The merit list is anticipated by 16th May 2025, candidate results would then issue in the following week.