Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and his colleagues. I am always confused by the distinction between the Civil Service and the public service. I think I have a handle on the difference now. I wonder whether it is useful to distinguish between them as we try to work with unions to get more from less while delivering better public services to the public. Is it time for that archaic distinction to be looked at? The Minister spoke about the free movement of people across the public service. I think there are over 300,000 people in the public service. Do we not need greater flexibility to provide for cross-agency movement of staff between the Civil Service, the public service and the local authorities, etc.? I am often contacted by people who are working in Dublin and looking for a transfer down the country. The obstacles and barriers they encounter when they try to secure that kind of movement are misplaced in today's circumstances.

I acknowledge that the Croke Park agreement has delivered in some respects. I am also of the opinion that some of the so-called achievements could be seen as box-ticking.

From recent personal experience, I am irked by the difficulty one has in arranging a parent-teacher meeting outside school hours. Despite teachers working an additional 2 million hours nationally, the number of contact hours has not increased in most primary and secondary schools. It appears that teachers are starting the working day earlier with a meeting or roundtable discussion before teaching of classes commences. Many teachers will acknowledge that they have ticked a box in this regard. I am not sure what additional hours have been provided for members of the public. We need tangible outcomes.

In the context of the further engagement on the Croke Park agreement sanctioned by the Government, I welcome the commitment to engage in dialogue given by the public service unions. Is the Minister factoring into the arithmetic for the budget which will be announced on 5 December additional savings in 2013 pending the outcome of this engagement, even though it has not yet commenced?

The Minister indicated that recent borrowing rates would have allowed us to fund the State at an affordable cost. While these are important indicators, unfortunately, the trickle down effect in terms of how such barometers deliver for citizens is a more longer term prospect. The worst manifestations of the crisis are unemployment, emigration, etc. We need to get a real handle on the profile of the live register in areas such as youth unemployment and the long-term unemployment rate. Prospective employers should be able to log on to the Department's website and find out how many IT specialists, plumbers or other specialists are available in their locality. This type of profiling of the live register is long overdue and a glaring defect which needs to be addressed. Are there proposals to address this matter through reform?