Issues: Communicating reform
Thursday, April 11th, 2013Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform Brian Hayes talks to Owen McQuade about progress on public sector reform, the imperative for better communication with the public, and the major potential for savings in procurement. “We have made good progress,” Brian Hayes affirms as he reviews the Government’s performance on his remit: public sector reform. “The plan is unique in that it is very firmly focused on deliverables, by very clear timelines with people responsible.” Hayes’ work as Minister of State mainly focuses on the Department of Public...[full story]
Issues: Resilient innovation: Finland’s example
Thursday, April 11th, 2013Head of Innovation at the Finnish Ministry of Employment and the Economy Jaani Heinonen talks to Peter Cheney about how its small economy has thrived on meeting new challenges. Throughout Finnish history, the country has found itself performing well when it faces difficulties, according to Jaani Heinonen. Despite having a larger land area than the British Isles, Finland has a relatively small population of 5.4 million. The start and end of the Cold War presented the Finnish economy with major problems but the country has risen above them each time. Heinonen states that almost every policy...[full story]
Roundtable: External delivery of public services
Thursday, April 11th, 2013Business process service company SouthWestern hosted a round table discussion on the issues around public sector reform and the role of outsourcing public services in delivering change. How is the reform of public services progressing? Tom Geraghty I have a personal objection to the term reform, as if there was some inherent deficiency in the Public Service. However, inevitably in the circumstances where the Government has less money to spend on public services, as any other set of organisations would do, it will have to look at how it delivers its services. In particular, how to deliver...[full story]
Issues: When the bottom line really matters
Thursday, April 11th, 2013At a time when the Government and public service bodies are under pressure to get the best value, manage budgets and maintain high service levels, Alex Campbell, Sales Director of eircom Business, explains why choosing the right mobile communications partner is more important than ever. eircom has delivered communication solutions and services to public service bodies for many years and is acutely aware of the challenges they face on a day-to-day basis. Managing costs is crucial and the ability to have a clear picture of expenditure is essential when making purchasing decisions. Following...[full story]
Issues: Governments set out CAP reform plans
Thursday, April 11th, 2013A CAP reform deal moves closer after member states agree their negotiating position. The European Union’s national governments have agreed a common negotiating position on CAP reform following talks chaired by Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney. The next step is the ‘trilogue’ stage i.e. negotiations between the Council of Ministers, the European Parliament and the European Commission. These will start on 11 April and the Government wants to achieve a final deal by the end of the Irish presidency on 30 June. “It is difficult to overestimate the scale of today’s achievement,...[full story]
Europe, Issues: EU-IMF update: Preparing for another austerity Budget
Monday, October 29th, 2012A €3.5 billion budget adjustment is the major task for the final quarter of 2012 under the EU-IMF programme. eolas reports. The Government’s efforts to ease its path through the current EU-IMF programme and to avoid another intervention are being helped and hindered by the same narrative of possible debt relief. As with political speculation before the Fiscal Treaty referendum on a possible re-structuring of the €28 billion Irish Bank Resolution Corporation promissory note, the promise to break the link between Irish sovereign and banking debt following June’s European Council...[full story]
Health, Issues: Cutting the drugs bill
Monday, October 29th, 2012The Government has cut the bill for patent and off-patent drugs, and is targeting generic drugs next. Stephen Dineen reports. Negotiations between the Department of Health, HSE and the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) have concluded with an agreement that is estimated to save the State’s drugs bill €400 million over three years. According to the department, €210 million of the savings will come from the cost of new drugs, with the balance from expenditure on existing drugs. €16 million will be saved this year, increasing to a gross saving of €116 million in...[full story]
Issues: Without a home this winter
Monday, October 29th, 2012Rough sleeping has increased sharply over the last year and homelessness, in all its forms, is affecting almost 4,000 people, including nearly 300 families. Peter Cheney reports. A census study has given a new insight into the needs of Ireland’s homeless people and reaffirmed that homelessness takes many forms, including rough sleeping and living in shelters and temporary accommodation as people wait for a lasting home. The 2011 Census, held on 10 April, was the first time that the Central Statistics Office (CSO) had identified homeless people by their location, rather than...[full story]
Issues: Can the Public Sector be a Great Place to Work?
Monday, October 29th, 2012CEO of Great Place to Work Ireland John Ryan believes that the Government and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform need to re-affirm their commitment to Public Sector employees who may now feel they are viewed simply as a cost to be reduced rather than a significant asset to be appreciated. To truly deliver a massive change programme within the Irish Public Sector, it is essential that the employees feel part of the process. After all, it is our Public Sector employees, the people at the heart of the current reform process, who will deliver this change. With...[full story]
Education, Issues: Junior Cert reform divides opinion
Monday, October 29th, 2012Ruairí Quinn is moving ahead with radical reforms for the junior cycle but teaching unions warn that pressure on staff will increase and standards are at risk. Education Minister Ruairí Quinn’s plans for reforming the Junior Certificate aim to place students rather than exams at the centre of the system but teaching unions claim that qualifications will be devalued. In one of the most radical changes to exams since the foundation of the State, assessment will shift from state-set final exams to teacher-assessed coursework. “We already know that significant numbers...[full story]
