Vol. 567 No. 6
117 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Finance the specific steps it is intended to take to meet the commitments to modernisation of the public service given in Sustaining Progress; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14648/03]
My Department has written to all Secretaries General and other heads of offices to ask them to put in place the necessary measures to ensure that the Civil Service change and modernisation agenda set out in Sustaining Progress can be delivered. Secretaries General who are responsible for particular sectors of the public service were also asked to ensure both that the stakeholders and agencies within their sectors were fully informed of the terms of the agreement and that they would actively participate in pushing forward the change and modernisation agenda. Arrangements have also been put in place by my Department to monitor developments in the modernisation commitments in Sustaining Progress across the public service. In addition, the strategic management initiative implementation group of Secretaries General has assumed a role of overseeing and driving progress towards achieving these commitments.
A key element in ensuring that the commitments to modernisation will be achieved is the provision in Sustaining Progress that payment of the final two phases of the benchmarking increases and the general round increases is dependent, in the case of each sector, organisation and grade in the public service on verification of satisfactory achievement in relation to these commitments. This verification process will be carried out for each of the sectors of the public service by separate sectoral performance verification groups (PVGs). These groups will include independent members drawn from the private sector and customers of the relevant public sector. Each sectoral PVG will make an assessment of progress, at the latest, one month in advance of each of the payment dates specified in the agreement, apart from the first 25% of the increases recommended by the PSBB.
I am satisfied that the verification arrangements set out in Sustaining Progress as well as the administrative arrangements I have outlined will prove to be adequate towards meeting the commitments on public service modernisation set out in that agreement.
