Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

We introduced a referendum to cut judges' pay. I have introduced new financial emergency measures in the public interest to implement that and other reductions, including pensions to further abate those with high public service pensions. It is absolutely wrong to say that we have not been active on that front. It is popular to trot out the same old thing and Deputy McDonald is addicted to popular phrases as opposed to reality. The head-count issue is important because we need to reduce public service numbers, but the Deputy is right in that it is not the solution in itself. We need reform in order to do things differently and that is why we are engaging through the implementation body with the sectoral committees to bring about real reform in service delivery. We are doing things differently, including shared services. The Civil Service shared human resource service is in the process of being set up, and we will follow that through with other shared services, including payroll management and pension costs. We are identifying leave arrangements, including sick leave, and are currently in the Labour Court on that matter. We are moving on a variety of fronts.

If the Deputy is interested, we will come back to the committee again to present the latest instalment of where we are on the 200 aims of the civil servants' reform programme. We are ambitious and are doing things that have not been done in a generation.

See this speech in context