Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 January 2014
662. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Health if consideration will be given to amending section 39 of the Health Act under which financial supports are provided to voluntary and non-Governmental organisations to increase transparency and accountability of such items as director and management salaries in view of the fact that such a legislative measure would increase public confidence regarding the use of public money [2935/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraAll State agencies under the aegis of, or funded by, the Department of Health are subject to the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies issued by the Department of Finance and the Framework for Corporate and Financial Governance issued by the Department of Health. Line Units within the Department with governance responsibility for individual agencies meet regularly throughout the year with the agencies to monitor compliance.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) funds a range of service providers under section 38 or section 39 of the Health Act 2004. The staff in bodies funded under Section 38 of the Health Act, 2004 are classified as public servants and are subject to the standard salary scales for the health sector as well as having public service pension schemes and being counted in public service employment numbers. Employees of organisations that receive grants from the HSE under Section 39 - the organisations referred to by the Deputy - are not public servants and are not specifically subject to the salary scales approved for public servants.
However, at my request, the HSE wrote to the CEOs of the 353 Section 39 funded agencies in receipt of HSE funding of more than €250,000 on the 10th December, 2013 asking them to have due regard for overall Government pay policy in respect of the remuneration of their senior managers. The HSE as part of the Service Agreement process for 2014 will require all funded agencies to disclose senior management remuneration and will have systems and processes in place to oversee compliance with this aspect of each funded agency’s service agreement.
The HSE is committed to the development of effective working relationships in line with the provisions of the Health Act 2004 and significant progress has been made in improving the governance and management framework between the HSE and voluntary service providers. A Register of Non-Statutory Agencies covering Service Arrangements and Grant Aid Agreements is in operation. This provides information on Agencies and facilitates the maintenance of key information on funding arrangements including compliance with requirements under the HSE's formalised national governance framework to manage the funding provided to voluntary organisations. This governance documentation was developed in 2009, with the agreement of all major service providers, and came into operation across all sectors in 2010. These Governance Documents ensure a national standard consistent application of good governance and is subject to regular review.
In 2013 an additional information return was also added to all Service Arrangements, both Section 38 and 39, requiring agencies to separately report on all individual staff paid at Grade 8 level equivalent or above, detailing their salary including allowances and any other benefits paid. The HSE’s internal audit service also provides audit reviews of Agencies either on an individual Agency basis, a sample basis, or across a range of agencies on a specific topic such as the recent Section 38 Agencies Remuneration Audit. The results of these audits have influenced the documentation reviews and recommendations relating to the management structures, and corporate processes.
