I thank the Seanad for providing time for statements on the thirteenth Annual Report of the Ombudsman, 1996. The consideration of the Ombudsman's report by this House is most important. As Members are well aware, the contribution of Seanad Éireann to the success of the office of Ombudsman has, over the years, been crucial. It is important that the role of the Seanad is appreciated and maintained.
More than 20 years ago the question of whether this country should follow the Scandinavian and New Zealand example by establishing an office of Ombudsman was a major issue. At about that time, two esteemed former Members of this House — the then Leas-Cathaoirleach, Evelyn Owens and Independent Senator Gus Martin — were selected to serve on the informal committee which reported to Government on the issue. Their contribution was immense.
The lifelong commitment of Senator Owens to the advance of women's causes was universally recognised. It was in this context that she made a particular contribution to the process of establishing the office by endorsing the universally understood description "Ombudsman" for the new office, rather than some specially coined term less open to suggestions of gender bias. When that institution came into being, this House was to the forefront in making time available to discuss the annual reports which the two ombudsmen produced.
Given its composition and freedom from much of the pressures which affect us in the other House, this House has displayed a continuing and lively interest in the subject of public service reform over the past two decades. It is fitting, therefore, that it should turn its attention to the thirteenth Annual Report of the Ombudsman, 1996, which was published last June, at a time when the attentions of Members or aspiring Members of the House were likely to have been focused on other matters.
The position of the Ombudsman is unique. The holder of the office is unusual in being appointed not by the Government or a Minister but by the President on the nomination of the Houses of the Oireachtas. In this respect he resembles the Comptroller and Auditor General but unlike him, his office is not embedded in the Constitution.
Most of us see the Ombudsman as an investigator — a righter of wrongs. Indeed, his reports are concerned with the specifics of individual complaints against what may loosely be called "officialdom". This is the essence of his functions as provided for under statute. Those who resort to the Office of the Ombudsman are most immediately concerned with the details of their individual case.
In this House and in Dáil Éireann, we are obliged to address matters of national interest and issues which concern citizens generally. However, it is my conviction that we cannot hope to make the right decisions on behalf of the people and create and maintain proper democratic institutions of State if we lose sight of the concerns of ordinary individuals in their everyday lives. In this regard, the annual reports of the Ombudsman provide an invaluable service to the Government, Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, officials charged with responsibility for carrying out public services at all levels and, of course, to the public as users of public services and as taxpayers. The details of the cases published by the Ombudsman have, over the years, provided the "forensic evidence" of how well institutions of public administration are performing where it matters most: serving the public.
Under the present Ombudsman, Mr. Kevin Murphy, a number of innovative developments have taken place in the presentation of the annual report. It is published in both English and Irish; it is available to the public on the Internet and on diskette; last year the report set out general principles of good administration, and, this year, a checklist of standards of best practice which public bodies should adopt so as to ensure high quality public administration has been prepared to accompany the report.
As well as giving wider access to the report, these innovations provide a valid standard by which the reader can evaluate the performance of the public services as reported in relation to individual cases. The juxtaposition of principles of good administration, statements of best practice and reports of circumstances affecting people within one report, gives us at once a normative standard and an empirical analysis of a large segment of the public service.
Since its creation 13 years ago, the office of the Ombudsman has established itself as a key player at the centre of the Irish system of public administration. Central Government administration is, of necessity, complex; public bodies often present a bureaucratic face to the public. They have often been perceived as masters rather than servants of the citizen. This is being changed as part of the wider programme of institutional reform, legislation and organisational development under the strategic management initiative.
I am pleased to inform the House that the Ombudsman, Mr. Kevin Murphy, has accepted an invitation to be nominated as the first Freedom of Information Commissioner. This office was established under the Freedom of Information Act, 1997. In this new capacity, Mr. Murphy can bring his long experience as a public servant and his deep understanding of excellence in public administration to bear in ensuring the successful operation of freedom of information in Ireland. I am particularly pleased that Mr. Murphy has accepted what will be an important role as the Freedom of Information Commissioner. It widens and strengthens his remit and I do not doubt that he will bring the enthusiasm and high standard of excellence he displayed in the Office of the Ombudsman to his role as the first Freedom of Information Commissioner.
This is a time of change in the public service. This process is not solely a matter for the Executive arm of Government. The Members of both Houses of the Oireachtas collectively are the voice of the people and the advocates of the rights of the citizen. All the various dimensions of public administration are ultimately answerable, through the Oireachtas, to the people. We must ensure that our voice is heard and that the process of reforming the public service takes account of the actual conditions in the country, towns and cities. This whole process of public service change really matters only if it transforms, for the better, the entire relationship between public bodies and the public. If it were simply allowed to become a matter of concern to insiders within the system it will lose focus and fail to deliver the changes demanded. Lack of progress on key areas of reform during the 1970s and 1980s was, at least in part, attributable to this lack of focus.
Moreover, it is clear that the expectations of the public for better public services, as expressed by their representatives in the Oireachtas, are higher than ever before. Customer service is essential to successful businesses in the private sector. While the public service of its nature does not operate in the same competitive environment, we must continue to learn from the initiatives undertaken by banks, building societies and retailers in the private sector. My intention as Minister of State is to ensure that public bodies implement a more customer oriented service. Many of the elements set out in the Ombudsman's checklist of best practice are, in fact, incorporated in the policies we are putting in place.
As Senators are aware, the Public Service Management Act has been commenced by the Minister for Finance. This and other legislative changes are bringing real changes in the management of Departments and Offices across the Civil Service. The Public Service Management Act provides a legal basis for a new management structure in the Civil Service. It makes the accountability of civil servants more transparent. The new structures being put in place by means of the Act provide a framework for a new relationship between Ministers and the Civil Service. In effect, the Act provides a statutory basis for the modernisation of the administration of government.
Under the Public Service Management Act Departments are obliged to prepare and submit to their Minister a strategy statement setting out the key objectives, outputs and related high level strategies, including use of resources, of the Department. The timetable requires submission of these statements by March next year. Once Ministers have approved their strategy statements they will ensure that a copy is laid before each House of the Oireachtas within 60 days. This requirement is crucial. It is essential that elected representatives of the people are given an opportunity to address these statements individually. The process will give Dáil Éireann and this House a precise and comprehensive mechanism for evaluating whether quality and performance in the delivery of public services meets the highest standards. In this regard, the Ombudsman's checklist gives us an additional tool in assisting our deliberations in this regard.
At present, my colleague, the Minister for Finance, is preparing directions for Departments on the preparation of these statements and on the mechanisms of accountability for Secretaries General. In addition, the implementation group, set up by the Government on 28 July to drive the process of change in the Civil Service under the strategic management initiative, is developing additional guidelines to ensure that Departments are able to adapt quickly and efficiently to the requirements of the Act.
While implementing reforming legislation is an indispensable element of the process of reform of the public service, practical steps must also be taken at every level of government administration to ensure that the citizen as customer comes first. As Senators may recall, a leaflet setting out principles of quality customer service for customers and clients of the Civil Service was launched by the previous Government on 9 May last in Dublin Castle. The principles introduced by this quality customer service initiative, as it is known, address such areas as standards, information, timeliness and courtesy, complaints, redress, consultation, choice, better co-ordination and access. All Departments are committed to these principles and have undertaken to produce, by 1 November, a customer action plan setting out how these principles will be given full effect over the next two years.
As the House is aware, the strategic management initiative for the Civil Service emphasises the importance of quality customer service in the years ahead. I acknowledge the role of Senator Avril Doyle in the SMI when she was the Minister of State. Much credit is due to her for driving the process forward from its initial stages. The Government is determined to continue the implementation of the SMI. There is no choice in this regard. It must form a central part of how Government and others do business at the highest possible standard in the future. A high level working group has been established under the programme of change for the public service, "Delivering Better Government", to oversee improvements in this area. Indeed, the entire programme of change is in one way or another concerned with providing a better, more efficient and more responsive service to all customers and clients of the public service.
I wish to address a question raised directly by the Ombudsman in his report in regard to the Government's plans for his office. As the House is aware, the Government's programme — An Action Programme for the Millennium — includes the commitment that a key part of the process of institutional reform in the public service will involve "expanding the remit of the Ombudsman to include legal, medical and other areas."
Much work has already been done in this area by several Governments. The general principle of extending the remit of the Ombudsman has been a part of the programmes of virtually every party in the Oireachtas. Since assuming office, I have re-examined the earlier work done in light of the Government's specific proposals and I can report that this work is proceeding satisfactorily. The preparation of specific proposals is now well advanced in relation to extending the remit of the Ombudsman to cover a number of new areas — for example, over administrative matters in non-commercial State funded bodies which receive most of their funding from the Exchequer, including non-medical matters of voluntary hospitals.
The Minister for Finance intends to put to Government specific proposals on changes in these areas at an early date. My objective is to ensure that appropriate legislative proposals are brought to the Oireachtas without delay. I have also been informed by my colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, that consideration is being given to how proposals in relation to the medical area might best be implemented. In this regard, it is envisaged that consultations with relevant interest groups will be initiated in the near future.
I assure the House that the Government is committed to the promotion of excellence in the public service. The report of the Ombudsman makes a major contribution to setting standards and objectives to be reached as part of this ongoing process. In this regard, the Ombudsman, Mr. Kevin Murphy, and his staff merit the appreciation of all sides of the House. I was most pleased when the report was debated in the other House that there was a warm appreciation on all sides for Mr. Murphy's role and the manner in which he has tackled his responsibilities. The report sets new standards and the Ombudsman has rightly gone beyond his remit in setting down key benchmarks in the 1996 report which must be adhered to and achieved if we are to deliver quality services to the customer and be ready for the challenges which face us in the new millennium. I wish Mr. Kevin Murphy and his staff continued success. His new role as the first Freedom of Information Commissioner will greatly add to his remit.