4. The Committee notes that the NPA has no vacancies (notably at the beginning of 2012, vacancies among prosecutors was at 12%). This is less impressive given that, funding shortages last year led the NPA to remove all unfilled posts from its structure. Now with the additional pressures, the NPA has informed the Committee that every post that falls vacant becomes, in effect, an unfunded position which it cannot fill. This is wholly undesirable as it places strain on overworked prosecutors and when experienced prosecutors leave, their expertise cannot be replaced. The Committee notes too that the NPA was quite clear that it does not have the resources to assign two prosecutors for each of the dedicated sexual offences courts when these are re- established, despite this being a national priority.