merrion street

Good afternoon and thank you for coming here today.

This Government is a reforming government and we have

. 

 We have:

• Reduced the pay of the Taoiseach and Ministers;
• Reformed Ministerial transport arrangements;
• Changed the composition of TLAC to include an external Chair and more external members;
• Changed the TLAC terms that apply to Secretaries General on retirement;
• Introduced new pay ceilings for senior public servants;
• Reduced the number of Oireachtas Committees;
• Cut the overall costs of special advisors to Ministers; and,
• Published legislation to significantly reduce future Public Service pensions costs.

 My Department is driving these reforms and I would like to thank the staff in my Department for all their hard work and dedication.

There have also been significant reforms under the

, including:

• Reduction in public service numbers of more than 22,000 to end Quarter 3, 2011.
• The transfer of more than 1,000 staff of the Community Welfare Service from the HSE to the Department of Social Protection;
• The implementation of new redeployment procedures for second level teachers, resulting in the elimination of a surplus of some 200 teachers, together with the redeployment of some 850 surplus primary school teachers;
• The ongoing work to transfer some 700 staff from FÁS to the Department of Social Protection; and
• The redeployment of some 750 staff internally within the health sector.
• And the many other reforms as set in the progress report that is being published today.

 Today I am announcing further reductions in

. Based on the figures at the end of 2010, the total number of Public Service employees will be reduced by a further 23,500 by 2015.  At that point, Public Service numbers will have fallen by some 37,500, or 12%, since 2008. 

When delivered, this will have reduced our pay bill by over €2.5 billion, or 15%, since 2008.  This is a very significant saving.

Today I am also announcing further

.  We are now proceeding to rationalize 48 bodies by the end of 2012, and will be reviewing the position of a further 46 bodies by the end of June next year.  These measures are designed to make service delivery more effective and efficient.

In light of the budgetary and staffing outlook, the Government has also examined the

which was introduced in 2003 and has decided that it should be cancelled.  This will mean that some 40 projects will be cancelled.  32 projects - particularly those where permanent accommodation has been provided - will be left in situ and 22 others are being reviewed.  The Government will be making a decision on that review shortly.

Discussions have been ongoing between the Public Service Unions and officials of my Department to produce a model for the

right across the Public Service.

I wish to announce that I have approved final proposals for the standardisation of annual leave which have now been sent to the Public Service unions for their agreement.  Based on the spirit in which all the discussions took place, I am confident that these proposals will be acceptable to the Public Service unions.  These arrangements will see the abolition of historically based local leave arrangements such as festival and race days.  It will also eliminate many of the anomalies that exist under the current leave arrangements by having the same cap on the leave allowance for different public service employment groups.  This will lead to greater uniformity of terms and conditions in the Public Service and enhance the fluid movement of staff between different sectors and organisations.

Today I am also launching an

, which will be integrated with other ongoing reform initiatives at sectoral level.  

The

I am publishing contains almost 70 recommendations and 200 key actions to be taken.

 The Plan includes:

• Implementation of a radical restructuring of how we do business by establishing shared services models for areas such HR, payroll and pensions;
• Better use of technology to improve services for citizens;
• Further reform of public procurement processes – led by Minister Hayes and the NPS;
• Property rationalisation and reforms to how we manage property; and
• Reducing costs, addressing duplication and eliminating waste across the entire system.

The Reform Plan sets out

.  These are:

Placing customer service at the core of everything we do;

Maximising new and innovative service delivery channels;

Radically reducing our costs to drive better value for money;

Leading, Organising and Working in new ways;

A strong focus on implementation and delivery.

Focusing on

:

• We will develop the Public Services Card to ensuring that citizens have ease of access to a range of services through multiple channels, commencing in 2012.
• Building on the successful Healthstat initiative, we will evaluate the potential for a wider GovStat initiative during 2012 to ensure that the citizens can see how well services are being delivered
• We will create a new single awarding authority for student grants including an online application process for more than 72,000 students.

 In relation to

:

• The Government has already launched “GOV.IE”, a central web portal for over 300 public services online and we will build on this.
• Other electronic services, including first time voter registration and the rollout of “fixyourstreet.ie” are set out in the Plan.
• We will also improve data sharing across Public Service organisations and develop a truly integrated approach.

To

:

• We will rationalise our property portfolio, reduce maintenance costs and release properties for cash.
• We will accelerate the reform of procurement and consolidate our ICT infrastructure.
• We will identify and evaluate opportunities to utilise new business models to support the delivery of non-core processes or services, where appropriate.

 In

:

• We are commencing projects for shared services in the Civil Service in the areas of HR, Payroll and Pensions, to streamline operations and remove duplicate activities, commencing in 2012 and to be completed by 2015.
• We will streamline administration through business process improvement and the implementation of shared service models within each sector of the Public Service.
• We will improve the management of performance, both of organisations and individuals, and we will tackle underperformance where it arises.

 To

of Public Service Reform:

• The emphasis is on the implementation and delivery of results in specified timeframes.
• We have developed a common plan and set of deliverables.
• On the basis of the overall Public Service Reform Plan launched today, Government Departments and major Offices will develop their own high-level reform plans.
• Reform will be driven by the Cabinet Committee on Public Service Reform, and supported and driven by the recently established Reform and Delivery Office in my Department.
• This Office will be led by a dedicated Programme Director and Team.

I would like to

for its dedication and commitment, as we strive to “do better with less”.  Public servants have responded well to the challenges that we are facing and across the system nurses, doctors, teachers, gardaí, prison officers, civil servants, soldiers and other public servants have made, and are making, an enormous contribution to our recovery.

I should also thank officials across the public Service for their cooperation and hard work in the reform process. 

I would also like to thank Minister Hayes for his tremendous work on this agenda and for his support.

 The implementation of the Public Service Reform Plan will involve an unprecedented level of change.  This is something that we must do together, as public servants and as citizens.  In setting out on this journey of change, we are open to

.  With this in mind, in the coming weeks I will be discussing the Reform Plan with the Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and the Public Accounts Committee.

The bottom line is we simply cannot sustain our current system of Public Service delivery -

  The coming years will not be easy.  A massive effort is required.  Future economic growth will only come from a solid and sustainable fiscal position.  Far reaching reform of the Public Service is central to this.  We are determined to succeed.  We will succeed.  And we will give Ireland a Public Service of which we can all be proud.

Thank you.