Statement by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform at the meeting of the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and the Taoiseach, on the 2019 Public Expenditure and Reform Group of Estimates

Both Minister O’Donovan and I are pleased to be here with you today to have the opportunity to present the 2019 Estimates for my Department’s Group of Votes. The Group comprises a significant number of Votes, as follows:

• the Vote for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and for the Office of Government Procurement;
• the Votes for a number of Offices under the aegis of my Department – the State Laboratory, the Public Appointments Service, the National Shared Services Office and the Office of the Ombudsman;
• and lastly, the Votes for Superannuation and Retired Allowances (which covers civil service pensions) and the Secret Service. The Vote for the remaining element of the PER Group – that for the Office of Public Works – is handled separately by this Sub-Committee.

I note that the Committee has been supplied with very detailed briefing by my Department’s officials on the various Votes in the PER Group, including those organisations under the aegis of the Department. Further detailed material is also contained in the Revised Estimates for Public Services 2019 which was prepared by my Department and published in December 2018.

In an overall context, it is worth noting that the total net allocation for the PER Group, comprising of 8 distinct Votes, for 2019 shows a modest increase of 3.2% on the 2018 allocation. The 2019 overall net figure is €537.7m compared to €520.9m in 2018.

The structure of the PER Vote remains unchanged in 2019, with two strategic Programmes focussed on Public Expenditure and Sectoral Policy and Public Service Management and Reform.

The requested resources for each Programme, in terms of staffing and funding, are set out in Part III of the estimate.

In 2019, we are seeking 5% increase in Net Spend on this Vote to bring total net allocation to €58.993 million. The increase is required on the first Programme – Public Expenditure and Sectoral Policy. This is largely related to an increase in admin pay (€2.2) to cover the cost of posts created in 2018 but yet to be filled and the pay increases under the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018-2020.

(€0.8m) is due to a decrease in expected income from EU programmes and a reduction in income from the Additional Superannuation Contribution that has replaced PRD since the 1st January.

In 2018, the Department consumed 96% of its Gross Expenditure when capital carry over is included. The 2018 Gross savings of €2.6m or 4% on the provisional outturn was the lowest since my Department’s establishment in 2011.

If I may turn now to Programme B of the PER Vote, Public Service Management and Reform: Reform of our Public Service has consistently been a key priority for this Government, and a comprehensive series of reforms having been implemented since we published the first public service reform plan in November 2011.

I launched the current iteration of public service reform Our Public Service 2020 (OPS2020) at the end of 2017, and the framework became operational during 2018. OPS2020 builds on the achievements of the previous reforms while setting a clear path for improvements beyond 2020.

The framework itself is built on three pillars and includes both new initiatives and actions that expand on and embed reforms already in place:

• firstly, delivering for our public, includes for example, the continued development of digital services under the Public Service ICT Strategy to deliver improved public services;
• secondly, innovating for our future, will support and encourage new thinking and innovative solutions;
• and finally, developing our people and organisations which will improve strategic human resource management to ensure the right mix of skills and tools are there to support public servants in delivering quality services.

One of the key considerations of the OECD in their Assessment of Ireland’s Second Public Reform Plan 2014–2016 was that the next phase of development for the Irish public service must focus on innovation. To this end, Our Public Service 2020 contains a number of firm commitments to champion a culture of innovation across the public service.

For 2019, €500,000 has been included in my Department’s Reform Agenda Fund on a pilot basis. This money has been set aside as a resource to incentivise public service bodies to fund or co-fund innovative projects. In particular, my Department will be seeking applications that:

• encourage the use of new technologies, tools, approaches and methodologies for the delivery of public services
• create opportunities for new and unusual partnerships between public service bodies
• strengthen the innovation capability of public service bodies by facilitating experiential and experimental learning
• develop solutions that encourage cross-Governmental collaboration and networked responses to challenges

This fund will generally be for small innovation projects and applications will be assessed on their ability to demonstrate value, scalability and transferability, focus on outcomes, contributory funding or resource allocation and the underpinning evidence base.

As Minister for Public Service and Reform, I recently introduced the first ever Public Service Data Strategy. The Public Service in Ireland, as in any country, has to collect, store and manage large amounts of data, including personal data in order to deliver services and develop policies. The Government is committed to doing so in a safe, secure and transparent manner that best meets the needs of society, and this whole-of-Government strategy sets out the means to do this.

In parallel, the Data Sharing and Governance Bill, currently before the Oireachtas, aims to create the legal basis for the governed sharing of non-sensitive data between entitled public service bodies and for giving citizens the capability to see what data about them is shared and by whom and for what purpose it is being used.

Ireland achieved first place in the European Commission’s Open Data Maturity assessment, for the second year in a row. Ireland’s Open Data Portal contains over 8,000 datasets that cover a range of areas including housing, water quality, statistical and geographic data.

Access to official, open format non-personal data supports more effective decision-making, increases transparency of public spending and empowers citizens to take a more active role in their communities.

It is essential that the Public Service continues to develop digital services that meet the needs and expectations of our people; in other words our services should be consistently easy and convenient to use.

An important element of our reform programme Our Public Service 2020 is to ‘Accelerate Digital Delivery of Services’. Work is progressing well on a range of initiatives including the single public service portal for online government services, gov.ie. In addition, uptake of the Public Services Card and MyGovID, which provide access to public services in an easy and safe manner, continues to improve.

Key to progress in providing digital public services is having people with the right skills in the right roles to develop these services.

We have been working with Civil Service HR departments to progress a range of initiatives around ICT Professionalisation in the Civil Service. I recently introduced the first ever Apprentice ICT Specialist programme for Government Departments and Offices.

In addition to progress in Public Service Reform, we continue to pursue a wide ranging reform programme aimed at delivering an open, accountable and ethical government underpinned by a transparent and effective public system. Real progress has been made on several different fronts with a number of significant legislative and public governance measures being delivered.

Better use and re-use of the data Government holds is a cornerstone of the drive for greater digital delivery of services, a key priority in our efforts to reform the Public Service.

Work is at an advanced stage on the Data Sharing and Governance Bill, which will promote and encourage data sharing between public bodies by providing a statutory framework for data sharing for legitimate and clearly specified purposes that are compliant with data protection law, and improve the protection of individual privacy rights by setting new governance standards for data sharing by public bodies.

Publication of official non-personal data in open format is also a core element of the Government’s efforts to improve the use of data. We have published a national Open Data Strategy 2017-2022 and operate a national Open Data Portal (data.gov.ie) where almost 9,000 datasets from over 100 publishers can be freely accessed and re-used. Negotiations on the text of the Open Data and re-use of Public Sector information Directive will be concluded during the lifetime of the current European Parliament. This Directive will strengthen the EU’s data-economy by increasing the amount of publicly held and publicly funded data available for re-use.

Work continues to develop Equality Budgeting, following the Programme for a Partnership Government commitment to develop a process of budget and policy proofing as a means of advancing equality, reducing poverty and strengthening economic and social rights. Equality Budgeting involves providing greater information on the likely impacts of budgetary measures, which, in turn, enhances the potential to better facilitate the integration of equality concerns into the budgetary process.

As announced in my Budget 2019 speech, Equality Budgeting is to be expanded to further develop the gender budgeting elements, and to broaden its scope to other dimensions of equality including poverty, socioeconomic inequality and disability. New programmes with objectives and indicators were included in the 2019 Revised Estimates Volume; the 2019 Revised Estimates Volume also collates all performance indicators that directly relate to areas of equality in an Appendix.

My Department and I are committed to working with other Departments and Agencies, and with experts and advocacy groups, in order to advance the Equality Budgeting initiative. Against this background, an Equality Budgeting Expert Advisory Group has been established to assist in the further development and roll-out of Equality Budgeting in Ireland.

2019 marks the third and final year of the current Spending Review process. In the last two years, over 50 analytical papers have been published. This analysis has looked at key areas of Government expenditure ranging from employment and enterprise supports to policing reform and workforce planning.

The analysis and results produced within the Spending Review provide my colleagues in Government and I, with a robust evidence base on key expenditure issues. These papers inform discussions around Estimates proposals in the context of the Budget each year.

I also welcome the valuable input to the broader discussion around expenditure policy that the Spending Review facilitates, not only by highlighting where we can make further incremental improvements, but also by shining a light on areas where we are innovating, delivering results and where our objectives are being achieved.

Clearly Brexit will pose significant challenges right across the economy. The Government is committed to addressing these challenges, to mitigating their impacts and to maximising the available opportunities.

On Tuesday the Government approved the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Bill 2019 which contains the immediate legislation required in a no-deal Brexit scenario. The Bill will be published this Friday, 22 February. This Omnibus Bill is a whole of Government contingency response, involving 15 different Parts across 9 Government Departments.

While ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement remains the Government’s preferred outcome, the Bill contains a series of measures designed to protect our citizens and support the economy, enterprise and jobs, in the event that the UK fails to agree a deal for their departure from the European Union on 29 March.

In order to support the passage of the Bill, relevant Ministers have appeared in front of their Committees to brief members on their respective sections of the Bill. The Government will continue to work very closely with all Opposition parties in the Oireachtas and all members of the Dáil and Seanad to ensure that the necessary legislation will be in place before the 29 March.

Within the Department, Brexit issues are coordinated by a dedicated Unit dealing with Brexit and EU issues. The Unit leads on work across the Department and its agencies, and represents the Department on the various groups that coordinate the Government’s response to Brexit.

I will conclude now by thanking members for their attention and I commend the 2019 Estimates for the Public Expenditure and Reform Group of Votes to the Committee.