Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 November 2019
60. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the monetary value of the reforms incorporated in policy in each of the past five years to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46973/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe significant public service reforms that this Government has undertaken in recent years continue to deliver improved services and value for money across a range of specific areas such as governance, accountability, procurement, shared services, organisational reform and property management.
In my own Department, two notable examples are the establishment of a centralised Office of Government Procurement and the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, established to lead the implementation of the Public Service ICT Strategy in cooperation with departments and agencies across the public service.
As Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, I must also seek to ensure that our fiscal and public expenditure policy is sustainable and that Public Sector policy continues to facilitate good economic performance in the future. In this context, there are a number of budgetary reforms introduced in recent years to guide my decisions on overall fiscal policy in this regard, including fiscal rules, expenditure ceilings and spending reviews.
Transformation across the diverse sectors that make up our public service in Ireland is however a continuous process. Although not exhaustive, an indication of the range of activities undertaken can be seen in the update (July 2017) on the 227 actions contained in the Public Service Reform Plan 2014-2016.
The policy document Our Public Service 2020 represents the current phase of public service reform. Our Public Service 2020 is a whole-of-public-service initiative designed to build on previous reforms, while expanding the scope of reform to focus on collaboration, innovation and evaluation. Our Public Service 2020 seeks better outcomes for the public, to support innovation and collaboration and to build public service organisations that are resilient and agile.
The first progress report on Our Public Service 2020 was published on 3 October 2019. The report, along with information and up-dates on the full range of Our Public Service 2020 activities can be accessed at the website OPS2020.gov.ie.
