Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 May 2018
29. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the mechanisms by which public performance budgeting will be achieved; the information that will be gathered to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of public expenditure; and the measures to be taken in the event that organisations and public bodies fail to deliver under the rubric of public performance budgeting. [21513/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn recent years, significant reforms have been implemented to Ireland’s budgetary framework to embed sound expenditure management practice that maintains a focus on the results being achieved across the public service and the extent to which public spending is delivering on key policy objectives. Performance budgeting is a key element of this suite of expenditure reform measures that also includes the augmentation of the Irish Government Economic and Evaluation Service (IGEES), tasked with carrying out evaluations and value for money reviews, and the Spending Review process that provides an evidence base to inform the prioritisation of expenditure.
A key aim of the performance budgeting initiative is to maximise the reporting of relevant quantitative metrics capable of being used to assess trends over time in order to underpin the scrutiny and appraisal of expenditure programmes. Since its introduction in 2011, performance budgeting has been subject to ongoing refinement with a clear focus on, and significant improvement in, the quality and volume of quantitative information published in the Revised Estimates Volume (REV). REV 2018, as part of a pilot programme of Equality Budgeting, also includes indicators relating to equality objectives for a number of Departments. The performance budgeting initiative also supports another important aim: transparency and accountability to the Houses of the Oireachtas and to facilitate budget oversight by the Oireachtas.
Performance Budgeting operates within the wider expenditure framework that is focused on seeking to ensure that growth in public expenditure is sustainable. However, increasing and competing public service demands means that managing expenditure within these parameters is challenging. In this context, the focus must be on examining the totality of public expenditure including in particular the rationale/objectives, effectiveness, efficiency and impact of public spending. The Performance Budgeting initiative, with its focus on quantitative metrics that can be tracked over time complements the revised Spending Review process that was introduced last year. The over-arching purpose of the Spending Review is to broaden the Government's toolkit within the budgetary process. A systematic review of the effectiveness and impact of expenditure within the existing cost base can produce options for reprioritisation of expenditure in order to fund new policies from within existing ceilings.
As such performance budgeting cannot be viewed in isolation from the other expenditure reform measures such as the continued expansion of the IGEES and the Spending Review process, that all work towards embedding an ongoing evaluation culture across Government.
