Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

I thank the Deputy for his good wishes. It is a daunting task. We are trying to reform a system that has built like Topsy since the 1920s. One of the most daunting aspects of the task is that there is no integration within the public service. Our ambition is to create an integrated public service with common pension and salary schemes and to rationalise various working hours. Some agencies and individuals have different working hours from others. During the summer, we saw surprising holiday arrangements for county managers. All of this work needs to be done, but changing it arbitrarily would be difficult. We are working within the confines of the Croke Park agreement to make radical change while holding the system together.

That we have set up a Department is the most important measure. We have a Minister charged with reform and an office of reform in the political and public service spheres. In the coming years, I hope we will see significant change in the way the public service is structured and delivers its services.

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