John Bruton
Question:70 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Defence the action taken by his Department on each recommendation of the PA consultancy report on the implementation of the strategic management initiative. [15021/04]
View answerThursday, 20 May 2004
Questions (70, 71)
Written answers
My Department has been very committed to the implementation of SMI since its launch in 1994 and has fully addressed the six core themes identified by the PA evaluation report. This is evidenced in successive strategy statements published by the Department and in our annual reports, which report on progress with the implementation of the strategy statements and the defence modernisation agenda.
Further evidence can be found in the Department's modernisation action plan submitted to the Civil Service performance verification group under Sustaining Progress and in the progress reports we have submitted to the group. The action plan deals comprehensively with the public service modernisation programme, which in turn is informed by the PA evaluation. The progress report on the action plan which we prepared for the CSPVG regarding the payments due from 1 January 2004 is on the Department of Finance website. It is intended that the most recent progress report would be published in due course following a decision by the group.
John Bruton
Question:71 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Defence if a management information framework as recommended by the Mullarkey committee has been put in place in his Department; and if he will explain the way it works. [15036/04]
View answerThe management information framework, MIF, project is part of the strategic management initiative, SMI, and arose out of a report in 1999 by a financial management working group of the SMI implementation group of Secretaries General. The MIF project aims at ensuring more efficient processing of financial transactions and accounts; better decision-making about the allocation of resources; more efficient and effective management of resources once allocated; and greater transparency in, and accountability for, the use of resources.
My Department and the Defence Forces are in the process of implementing MIF. In April 2004 a contract was signed with Oracle EMEA Limited, for the supply and implementation of new financial and management information systems. The target date for the installation of the new financial system is 31 December 2004.