Publications 2008
In May 2008, the Taoiseach appointed the Task Force on the Public Service to develop an Action Plan for the Public Service drawing on the analysis and recommendations of the OECD Review of the Irish Public Service.
The Report of the Task Force on the Public Service: ‘Transforming Public Services’ was launched by the Taoiseach on 26th November 2008. This report, which the Government has adopted in full, will change the way the Public Service is managed and how it does its business. Its implementation will result in unleashing the potential within the Public Service, and improve its functioning and coherence. The report endorses the core message of the OECD Review of the Irish Public Service (published in April), namely, that by working in new ways, the Public Service has the potential to deliver significantly improved services and outcomes to the citizen. The Task Force Report and the Government Statement on Transforming Public Services are attached hereunder.
A Framework for Sustainable Economic Renewal
FOREWORD
Ireland faces challenging economic circumstances but there are also great opportunities on the horizon. While it is imperative we successfully plan our way through the current economic storm, we must also restructure our economy so that we can be in pole position when the global recovery begins.
Building Ireland’s Smart Economy sets out an ambitious set of actions to reorganise the economy over the next five years and to secure the prosperity of current and future generations. It sets out a framework to address the current economic challenges and to build a ‘Smart Economy’ with a thriving enterprise sector, high-quality employment, secure energy supplies, an attractive environment, and first-class infrastructure.
The Organisational Review Programme (ORP), which was approved by Government in March 2007, is part of the latest phase of the public service modernisation led by the Department of the Taoiseach.
The purpose of the ORP is to review the current and likely future capacities of Government Departments, Bodies and Agencies in the three key areas of developing strategy, managing delivery and conducting evaluations.
The ORP is focused on individual organisations, especially in terms of their capacities to deliver on their strategic goals. As such, it complements the wider, system-level OECD review of the public service as published in the report, Ireland: Towards an Integrated Public Service.
Three Departments were reviewed in the first phase of the ORP:
(1) Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
(2) Enterprise, Trade and Employment and
(3) Transport.
The Report of the Organisational Review Programme (Pilot Phase), which was published in November 2008, includes follow-up action plans by each of the above three Departments.
This report is the ninth Annual Report published by the Department under the Public Service Management Act, 1997 and the third report on progress under the Strategy Statement 2005-2007. The Strategy Statement sets out our key objectives and overall direction. Each Division’s business plan is designed to assist the delivery of these objectives, which, in turn, are reflected in personal work objectives for each officer through the Performance Management and Development System. The Management Advisory Committee monitors progress on the implementation of business plans.
Report of the Government's progress towards implementation of the Programme for Government
This Summary Progress Report concentrates on key progress from November 2007 to date and was circulated to the Social Partners at the third Plenary meeting on the 15 February 2008