Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 June 2023
259. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform the benefit accruing the Exchequer arising from the implementation of reform proposals across all Government Departments and subsidiaries thereof; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31342/23]
View answerThe Public Service provides frontline and vital services around the country every day. It is also plays a critical role in supporting economic and social progress and due to its size, scale and level of investment in public services, it is an important source of employment and contributor to the wider economy.
Achieving tangible reform outcomes remains a key priority of my Department. The recently launched public service transformation strategy to 2030, ‘Better Public Services’, is aimed at delivering for the public and building trust. The vision set out in the strategy is for ‘Inclusive, high quality and integrated Public Service provision that meets the needs, and improves the lives, of the people of Ireland’. It will be achieved through implementing priorities under its three themes of Digital and Innovation at Scale; Workforce and Organisation of the Future and Evidence-Informed policy and services designed for and with our public. This strategy is a successor to the Our Public Service 2020 programme and builds on the achievements that the Public Service has achieved in recent years. It is aligned to Civil Service Renewal 2030 and Connecting Government 2030 the Digital and ICT Strategy for the Public Service and complements other reform initiatives thereby presenting one coherent framework for reform for the Civil and Public Service.
The emphasis of the strategy is on service delivery and supporting better public services for our people and of course our businesses. Public Service Bodies are key to achieving the ambition in the strategy and are tasked with identifying and prioritising actions in relation to each theme. They are requested to have regard to the priorities set out in this document in developing their corporate strategies; and to align the delivery of their own reform priorities in their business plans with the Public Service Transformation Framework and to report progress through their annual reports.
Other initiatives my Department is responsible for are aimed at managing public expenditure and ensuring we get the best possible outcomes for that expenditure. These include the spending review programme, performance budgeting and green budgeting programmes and the wellbeing framework, all of which are considered as part of our ongoing reform agenda. Monitoring and oversight of the delivery of public services is a core part of our public expenditure framework.
In this context, the Deputy may wish to note that I published the 2022 Public Service Performance Report on 21st June. The report provides a comprehensive account of the delivery of public services across all Government Departments last year. The Public Service Performance Report is an important step in demonstrating the performance of public services, presenting the spending in each sector along with key outputs and outcomes for that area. The performance-budgeting initiative has sought to strengthen the focus on what the public service delivers with public funds and to build this into the policy-making process.
Identifying outcome indicators is challenging and measuring outcomes is not straightforward, as many other contextual factors may affect the quality/provision of goods and services. However, the benefits from greater accountability and better targeting of policy outcomes can be significant.
