Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 12 June 2013
104. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will set out the value for money reports and the focused policy assessments carried out within his Department since March 2011; the actions that have been taken to implement such reports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28177/13]
View answerMy Department and its enterprise agencies have a culture of engaging in on-going evaluation of the effectiveness and efficiency of agency supports to business, to ensure that taxpayers are getting value for money and enterprises can avail of the most appropriate supports tailored to their needs.
Shortly after my appointment as Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, I requested that Forfás undertake a comprehensive evaluation of the suite of enterprise support programmes provided by the enterprise development agencies. This involves the systematic evaluation of about 70 programmes. An evaluations framework was developed to ensure a consistency of approach that facilitates comparison (where appropriate) and that is cognisant of the common challenges facing enterprise evaluation. The Framework was informed by international best practice regarding the core principles and methodologies required for the evaluation of enterprise support programmes. It provides a common basis for the evaluation of all enterprise support interventions and is cognisant of common challenges and issues facing enterprise evaluation.
The aim of the evaluations is to assess the appropriateness, efficiency and effectiveness of this package of supports for enterprises in Ireland. Programmes will be evaluated in terms of:
- Individual programme performance;
- Programme performance in relation to other interventions in the enterprise support system;
- Programme performance in relation to the enterprise policy context that applied during the time period under review.
The evaluations involve an extensive programme of work involving both internal and external resources. A Steering Group, chaired by Forfás and including representatives from my Department, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, the relevant Enterprise Development Agencies and an external adviser, oversaw the work.
To structure the evaluations, the agency programmes were categorised by thematic area:
- Entrepreneurship/Start-up Programmes;
- Research, Development and Innovation Programmes; and
- Business Development Programmes.
The evaluation of programmes under the first two thematic areas above has been completed and will shortly be published. Even in advance of their publication, many of the recommendations are being implemented by my Department and relevant Agencies, both through the Action Plan for Jobs process and as part of Agency on-going redesign of programmes, as schemes are identified as the most likely to impact positively on enterprise, growth and job creation.
Work on the third thematic area i.e. Business Development Programmes (BDPs) provided by Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland has recently commenced.
The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is also in the process of finalising a separate Focused Policy Assessment on Enterprise Ireland supports to indigenous companies.
In addition, there were general expenditure reviews of capital and current spending undertaken across my Department in mid-2011, of which a significant element related to STI (Science, Technology and Innovation) expenditure.
Further, a PA Consulting report was undertaken on behalf of the Higher Education Authority (HEA) regarding a review of Cycles 1 - 3 of the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions (PRTLI) in 2011. While this exercise was not undertaken directly by my Department, as my Department does not have responsibility for the HEA, my Department assumed responsibility for the PRTLI programme in March 2010, and some Cycle 3 projects were still on-going at that time.
