Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)

It is a shameful and broad-brushed attack on the Civil Service and public service. The majority of public servants are decent, hard working people, some of whom are on pitifully low wages and struggling to survive. Clerical officers are an example. Of course, there is an urgent need for public service reform. Everybody knows that and public and civil servants accept it. However, while this slash and burn approach might garner some kudos for the Minister in the right wing press and among right wing commentators, it contributes nothing to the debate about public sector reform.

Many civil servants are stretched to their limits. Does the Minister realise that the Department of Social and Family Affairs is struggling to cope with the collapse in employment and the growth in the live register to the extent that there are 38,000 applications for unemployment benefit still to be processed? The Department does not have enough personnel. I have some specific questions for the Minister. Will she outline what changes she has made in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment since she took office? Does she agree with the Minister of State's remarks and do they apply to her Department? Is she satisfied that each of the agencies under her remit are, first, value for money; second, being run effectively and, third, well managed? If so, is the Minister of State, Deputy McGuinness, simply looking for favourable headlines? Has the Minister of State's speech been discussed at the Department's internal management meetings?

Is the Minister of State talking about cutting the home help service, families' front-line nursing services, the national educational psychological service or the number of local authority workers, who have already been slashed with the 3% payroll cuts? A number of those workers will be gone and the public will soon realise it when services will no longer be available. Is the Minister talking about cutting the number of gardaí?

The Minister's party has been in government since 1997. What tangible changes have been implemented since then? If there have been changes, about what is the Minister of State complaining? If there have not been practical changes, why not?

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