Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

It is wrong to use the term "outsourcing" in respect of the establishment of State agencies to carry out specific functions designated thereto by the Executive and Oireachtas. It is improper to use the term in respect of the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and FÁS, for example.

On the question of there being a lack of political accountability, we must be careful at all times to ensure there is strong accountability to Parliament. We could always consider mechanisms to determine how to facilitate such accountability more effectively without intervening too much in the operations and activities of the State agencies. There were far more agencies in my Department when I was Minister for Health and Children and I took the decision to amalgamate quite a number of them into one national delivery service. This was after a very considered review and analysis by consultants and various other people.

The enterprise strategy group considered the future of industrial strategy. It did not recommend the amalgamation of Enterprise Ireland and the IDA, for example, nor did it recommend the abolition of county enterprise boards or other such bodies. These are the fundamental questions that arise if one is proposing a fundamental review of agencies in my Department.

There is a strong correlation between the success of the economy over the past ten or 15 years and the effectiveness of the bodies in question, particularly those on the economic side. Likewise, it is hard to doubt the need for a health and safety authority or the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement. Recent events necessitated the creation of such an office. It is also hard to doubt the need for FÁS as a national training office. When considering the existing bodies one at a time, one will not see much room for rationalisation or the elimination of some of them. The National Standards Authority has a particular role in facilitating the development of standard documents for manufacturers, service providers etc.

On the issue of accountability, the Minister for Finance recently developed new methods to deal with the accounting and financial expenditure in terms of how Estimates are laid before the Dáil and the respective committees. I support these and they may afford a greater opportunity to Members of the Dáil and Seanad to ensure the financial accountability of State bodies. The Comptroller and Auditor General has an oversight role, as does the Committee of Public Accounts. The fundamental question concerns the degree to which the Oireachtas wants to delegate responsibilities to State agencies. Much of the work of the agencies in my Department, such as Enterprise Ireland and the IDA, has been very successful. I am not so sure the agencies would have been so successful had they been encapsulated by the Civil Service.

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