Introduction

Good morning.

Firstly, I would like to thank the United Nations and the Government of the Republic of Korea for the opportunity to speak to you this morning about Ireland’s Public Service Reform and Political Reform programmes, and the role that they have played in our ongoing economic recovery.

While I will be addressing developments in Ireland, I believe that many of you involved in planning and providing public services will have shared similar experiences in their own countries.

That is why events such as this are important.  We are all trying to deliver the best quality services to our citizens.  We all endeavour to do so as efficiently as possible, and to ensure that we deliver value for money for our taxpayers.  And we all need to learn from each other – from our successes and, perhaps more importantly, from our mistakes.

That is how we will improve our public services – by sharing innovative approaches to service delivery and by cooperating in areas of mutual interest.

For example, I know that Ireland has benefited enormously from our engagement with the OECD over the years, as well as the UN itself, where we have developed relationships with a broad range of international experts who are willing to share their wisdom on many issues.

I should also stress the positive impact that Ireland’s participation in the European Union has had on our development, both socially and economically.  I will speak shortly of the support that the EU, along with the IMF, has given us during our economic recovery.

Context for Public Service Reform

As I am sure you know, Ireland’s economy suffered a serious setback in 2008 and 2009, partly due to the global economic downturn and partly, I think it is fair to say, as a result of domestic planning failures.

Our economic situation meant that tax revenues collapsed, at the same time as demands on our public services increased dramatically.  Increased unemployment meant that there was greater pressure on our social welfare system.  Economic and demographic factors also meant that there was increased demands on our health and education systems too.

Exiting the Programme of Financial Support

In November 2010, with the State’s ability to borrow on the markets seriously diminished, the then Irish Government agreed to a Programme of Financial Support for Ireland from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.  The objectives of the programme were to put Ireland’s economy on the path of sustainable growth, to stabilise the public finances and to create jobs, while protecting the poor and most vulnerable.

I am very pleased to say that Ireland exited the EU-IMF programme of financial support last December. Our exit from the Programme is the result of the commitment and determination of the Irish people to get the job done.  The programme has met its key objectives namely to put the public finances back on a sustainable path, to restore financial sector viability, to restore Ireland to financial market funding and to raise growth potential.  The Irish economy is recovering, the public finances are under control, the banking system is restructured and well capitalised and, most importantly, jobs are being created.

Ireland’s unemployment rate now stands at 11.8%, down from a peak of 15.1% at the end of 2011.  Obviously, that is still too high and we are continuing our focus on getting on employment creation.  Our tax revenue figures for the end of May showed an increase of 5.6% on the same period last year, ahead of our targets.  The signs are positive.

Fiscal Consolidation

Bringing the public finances into line has obviously been difficult.  Obviously no politician would ever relish increasing taxes and reducing public expenditure.  But I believe that we have taken responsibility and shown maturity in our recovery.

Since the height of the crisis in 2009, we made adjustments in revenue and expenditure that total more than €30 billion and government spending has been reduced by 13.5%.

Public Service Reform

It was clear to us that – in light of this expenditure consolidation and increased demands in public services – that significant, strategic and sustainable reform of the Irish Public Service was essential if we were to continue to deliver and improve services to citizens.

As such, Public Service Reform has been a key element of the Government’s strategic response to the economic crisis.  On taking office in 2011, we established a dedicated Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, integrating expenditure management and reform for the first time.

We have a much smaller Public Service now.  In overall terms, the number of staff working in the Public Service has decreased by more than 10%.

With regard to pay savings, the Public Service Exchequer Pay Bill has been reduced from a peak in 2009 by 22%.

This has been achieved through a number of pay measures and a reduction in the number of people working in the Public Service.

Public Service Reform Plan

The Government’s first Public Service Reform Plan of November 2011 provided the basis for the most significant programme of reform since the foundation of the State.  Since then, good progress has been made in terms of reducing costs; improving productivity; more digital delivery of services; development of shared services; and putting in place the structures to reform public procurement and property asset management, to name just some areas.

We have now embarked on a renewed wave of reforms, as set out in the Government’s new Public Service Reform Plan 2014-2016, published in January this year.  This new Reform Plan outlines the key cross-cutting and sectoral reform initiatives that will be implemented over the next three years, as well as addressing our broader ambition for reform towards 2020.

As the first phase of the Public Service reform programme was devised against the backdrop of the fiscal crisis, it was focused necessarily on ways to consolidate and reduce costs, take out duplication and waste, and improve expenditure controls.  As we reach a more sustainable fiscal position, this next phase of reform has the ambitious goal of a Public Service that will have positive outcomes for all stakeholders, including citizens, businesses and public servants themselves.

We are also implementing an initiative aimed at the renewal of our Civil Service, which provides a leadership role at the centre of the Public Service as well as delivering important services itself.  This will include a series of reforms to enhance accountability and performance within the Civil Service.

Industrial Relations

Our reform programme has been underpinned by two agreements between the Government and the public service unions.

Critically, these agreements provide a framework for widespread industrial peace and stability, ensuring a suitable environment for the delivery of the existing Public Service Reform programme, but also supporting additional reforms.

One of the most important aspects of the Agreements is the opportunity to deliver an unprecedented increase in Public Service productivity.  The various productivity and reform measures when fully implemented will add almost 15 million additional working hours annually, across all sectors of the Public Service.

Political Reform

Alongside our Public Service Reform programme, we are also implementing a series of reforms designed to rebuild public trust in the administrative and political branches of the State through greater openness and accountability, as well as better decision making.

The extension of our Ombudsman’s powers through came into effect in October 2012, resulting in the most significant expansion in the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman in the 30 years since the original legislation was first put in place.

Provision of a detailed legislative framework for Parliamentary inquiries commenced in September 2013. This legislation establishes a comprehensive statutory framework for our parliament to conduct inquiries and investigations.

Legislation for the regulation of lobbying has been drafted and will be presented to Parliament shortly.

The introduction of legislation protecting whistleblowers will be enacted in the coming months.  This forms a key part of our anti-corruption framework and provides comprehensive protection to whistleblowers in all sectors of the economy.

Extensive reform of our Freedom of Information legislation will extend it to almost all public bodies.  In tandem with the drafting of this legislation, work is well advanced in developing a Code of Practice to support its implementation.

An overhaul of our ethics legislation is being progressed, aimed at supporting and promoting ethical conduct, creating an environment in which ethical and conflict of interests are managed effectively and corrupt and unethical conduct are severely discouraged.

My Department is also leading on Ireland’s participation in the Open Government Partnership (OGP), which serves to complement these existing objectives and provides an important international complement to national reform efforts.  The intention is that Ireland will become a full member in the coming weeks.

Reform of the Budgetary Process

As part of our efforts to improve and open up the budgetary decision making process, we have implemented a series of budgetary reforms.

A new Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, setting out multi-annual ceilings for each Department on a rolling three year basis, has been implemented.  The amount of information provided in the annual Estimates has been increased, as part of the implementation of our Performance Budgeting initiative.  A new Public Spending Code has been introduced to ensure that both current and capital expenditure are subject to more rigorous value for money appraisal in advance of public moneys being spent.

Reform and Sustainable Growth

An effective and efficient Public Service can provide an environment that enables economic growth and employment creation.  The performance and reputation of public institutions is also a critical factor contributing to a country’s competitiveness and the attractiveness of its business environment for investment – both domestic and foreign.  And of course, greater efficiency reduces the need for taxes to fund services.

As we embarked on our Public Service and political reform programmes, we were conscious that the reforms we made, and are making, are not merely about making short term cost savings.  It is imperative that we take a more long-term approach, both in ensuring that our Public Service is fit-for-purpose today but also that it is strategic and flexible to allow it to respond and adapt to future challenges.

We must also ensure that we continue to develop our capacity for evidence-based decision making, in terms of how we plan, deliver and fund services.  The objective of public planning should be to ensure positive outcomes for service users – both citizens and businesses – over the longer term.

Need for Innovation and Cooperation

We are also building our capacity for innovative approaches to public service delivery, looking at new funding models and cooperation with the voluntary and private sectors.

Ireland’s Public Service of the future will be smaller and less expensive.  It will, therefore, need to be smarter and more flexible.  It will embrace change as a constant and it will ensure that we can continue to improve our public services in a way that is both progressive and sustainable.

As I mentioned at the start, there is enormous potential for us to share our experiences and innovations.  While there are obviously different circumstances facing different countries and regions, there is much more that we have in common.

Conclusions

On that note, I wish you all the best for the coming days.  I think it is fair to say that this event presents us with a real opportunity to share learning and to build relationships that will help all of us to work together to achieve our common goals – to develop the best possible public services and to ensure that public administration facilitates sustainable development.

Thank you.

ENDS