Government Statement on TPS

Introduction

The Public Service is of vital national interest. How well it performs and how efficiently it operates are of critical importance to the lives of every citizen and the well being of the community as a whole. A high performance Public Service is increasingly recognised as a critical ingredient in international competitiveness, as well as an essential requirement for addressing the complex social needs of modern communities.

This is evident from the size and diversity of the Public Service - with over 350,000 people employed, in Education (in schools, higher education institutions and adult and further education), in Health (in hospitals, in the community and in the ambulance service), in Local Government (in water and environmental services, in planning, in housing, in libraries and in the fire service), in Justice (in the Gardaí), in Defence (at home and abroad), in the Civil Service (in social welfare offices, in the Revenue Commissioners and in embassies overseas) and in State agencies (such as IDA Ireland and the Environmental Protection Agency).

We are fortunate in having a Public Service comprising dedicated men and women who make a major contribution to the economic and social life of Ireland. Their role in supporting Government at national and local levels, in the development of policy and the delivery of services, and in the provision of infrastructure is essential. However, while that role has been changing, the Government believes that the Public Service must now change even faster if it is to continue to attract the confidence and support of the citizen. It must also change faster so that Government can respond effectively to current and emerging challenges, in the economy and in society, and internationally.

Returning to a sustainable level of economic and social progress in the medium term, tackling climate change and managing the longer term challenges arising from demographic change, for example in the areas of elder care and pensions, will require new tasks to be undertaken in new ways by individual organisations and individual public servants. Perhaps, more importantly, the message from the review of the Public Service conducted by the OECD is that there is a significant gain in productivity, in value-for-money and in satisfaction of the citizen to be realised by Public Service organisations and employees working across organisational, professional, sectoral and geographical boundaries.

The Public Service must also be affordable to the community it serves. That requires that public services are delivered at the least possible cost, and that maximum output is received from the resources - financial, human and physical - invested in the delivery of public services. Value-for-money must be a priority at any time: in the current period of severe economic and fiscal challenge, it becomes imperative. Therefore, how Public Service organisations are organised and managed, howservices are designed and delivered and how necessary support functions are performed must meet the highest standards of productivity and efficiency. There must be assurance that this is being achieved through proper information, analysis and audit, supported by robust systems of accountability.