Ms Patricia Byron:

There are internal shared services, as seen in the human resources services in Clonskeagh. This has been done very successfully by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

In respect of external shared services, the State should not continually invest in the technology that is changing, not just by the month but by the day. We can buy or drop the services and connect with these external suppliers, as we wish. We have been doing this for ten years and we have the capacity to do and grow it. A common framework could be put in place for all State registrations and paperwork which could then be brought into the technicians. Although the quality of the public servants who have been appointed is very high, maybe they should not administer general queries on paper and so forth.