Enda Kenny
Question:1 Mr. Kenny asked the Taoiseach if he will report on the work of the National Economic and Social Development Office; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27089/02]
Ceisteanna – Questions. - National Economic and Social Development Office.
The National Economic and Social Development Office, NESDO, comprises the National Economic and Social Council, the National Economic and Social Forum and the National Centre for Partnership and Performance. Legislation underpinning the establishment of NESDO was published in April 2002 and when enacted will place the three bodies on a statutory basis as part of the office. The primary role of NESDO is to add value to the work of its constituent bodies by creating the conditions under which synergies can be released, joint projects pursued and the potential for duplication minimised.
The office promotes the development of a shared vision for realising these goals and encouraging the constituent bodies to maximise their impact through collaborative policy development initiatives. In particular, it performs its role by facilitating and promoting complementary programmes of research, analysis and discussion in the NESC, NESF and NCPP, providing shared administration and support services for the three constituent bodies and submitting to Government reports, recommendations or conclusions by a constituent body and arranging for their publication.
When does the Taoiseach expect legislation to create this office to be introduced? Will the office manage the new partnership deal?
The legislation will be passed as soon as the House and the Whips can agree to do so. To date, however, it has been working on a non-statutory basis and this has not resulted in any great difficulty; it does not affect its work in any way. The organisation was set up on a non-statutory basis some time ago. All the constituent organisations have since moved into one headquarters for administrative and other purposes.
It will not be the function of the office to look after the partnership. The NESC plays a role in providing a strategic report every three years on what it sees as the key issues for the State to deal with. An overview of the NESC strategy, An Investment in Quality: Services, Inclusion and Enterprise, was published in November. That is their role in it. The priority of NESDO for the coming year is to promote complementary programmes of research, analysis and discussion by the three bodies. It will continue to provide shared administrative and support services. It will report on various initiatives. The NCPP, the newest of the three bodies, is compiling a number of reports on how partnership would work in the private sector. It has done a considerable amount of work and will produce a number of reports during the course of the year on that issue.
What is the extent of the cutback in funding for the NESC this year? Does the Taoiseach not consider that the cutback will seriously hamper its work in developing this new programme?
One of the benefits of the three organisations joining together, using a single administration and sharing the overheads is that it will create a saving in 2003. The total estimate for the constituent bodies of NESDO in 2003 is €2.8 million, a saving of 8.6%. The corresponding figure for last year was €3.078 million. There has been a saving over the period but that is due to the administration. It does not affect the staff. The staffing rate of the organisations is still the same, except in administration.
How will this body function? What is the top tier of management? Will there be a director and a number of deputy directors and will they report to a board? Will the board be located in the Taoiseach's Department? Is the body under the aegis of the Department of the Taoiseach?
The organisations are independent and have their own boards. The NCPP has nine staff: one executive chairperson, one director, five national co-ordinators, one executive secretary and one executive officer. The overall number of staff is a little larger. There are, effectively, two people with NESDO. The director is also the director of NESC. There are eight and a half staff with NESC, seven with NESF and nine with NCPP.
There is an independent board and a research group that works for the organisations. The board comprises members of the social partners and independent personnel. Mr. Peter Cassels is the executive chairperson for the national centre for partnership. There are four employers' representatives, four union representatives, three people representing my Department, the Department of Finance and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, an assistant secretary from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and four academic members who represent the business schools and other areas where partnership is part of the academic studies.
They are linked into 23 outside organisations who have a base or an interest in developing partnership within the private sector. They are combined into a national research panel which advises the centre on a wide range of research programmes. Second, a network of strategic alliance partners has been established to co-ordinate the efforts of key agencies and Departments at national level and to bring about radical change and improved performance in organisations in the private and public sectors.
The centre's strategy sets out a framework within which the centre will work in collaboration with many organisations. It has a small staff. It will develop this work from its previous incarnation when it worked as a partnership body within my Department under the last—
Which Department picks up the tab?
It has its own subhead but my Department is accountable for it, as it was for the old NESF. When they amalgamated, they had their own subhead and accounting officer. They are not using any of the offices they previously used in my Department.
Having been a member of the NESC for a number of years, I would like the Taoiseach to outline where he thinks the synergy justifies the cuts already announced in the Book of Estimates in relation to the NESC. It seems NESC is in operation—
The Deputy must ask a question.
I am exemplifying the question by pointing out that the staff of the NESC—
It is not appropriate for a Deputy to point out. The Deputy should ask a question for the Taoiseach to answer.
Given that the NESC has a staff of a director, three researchers and three secretaries, how can cuts be possibly justified at a time when economic intelligence has never been more necessary?
As I pointed out in my reply to Deputy Kenny, the staff is 25.5 people.
That is not the figure for the NESC.
The figure for the NESC is 8.5 people. The only savings achieved by bringing the three organisations together are that they do not have to rent separate offices – although the people who were in my Department were obviously not paying rent – and overheads are lower because they are using the same administrative staff. There have been no other savings – they have just used their facilities in a more effective way.