Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Question 175: To ask the Minister for Finance the extent to which the increases in public sector pay agreed with the social partners will be linked to improvements in performance and productivity in accordance with commitments made in the programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33267/08]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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The Programme for Government commits the Government to maintaining the success of Social Partnership by working with the social partners to ensure the full implementation of the Towards 2016 agreement and ensuring that pay improvements for public sector workers continue to be linked to delivery and verification of agreed improvements in public services.

Towards 2016 sets out a mechanism for the verification of progress at sectoral, organisational and grade level in the Public Service through the establishment of a Performance Verification Group for each of the sectors — health, education and local authority sectors, the Civil Service, the Garda Síochána and Defence Forces. Under the terms of Towards 2016, payment of each of the Public Service pay increases is dependent on verification of satisfactory achievement in relation to co-operation with flexibility and ongoing change, including co-operation with satisfactory implementation of the agenda for modernisation set out in the agreement, maintenance of stable industrial relations and the absence of industrial action in respect of any matters covered by the agreement.

Through the performance verification process, it has been possible to establish that there has been co-operation with flexibility and ongoing change, stable industrial relations have been broadly maintained, and there has been co-operation with satisfactory implementation of the agenda for modernisation set out in the agreement. There has been ample evidence of significant improvements in areas such as financial management, human resources management, regulatory reform, eGovernment initiatives, and customer service delivery.

The new Transitional Agreement under Towards 2016 recognises that the Public Service must review continuously its systems, processes and procedures, to ensure that it is responsive and efficient and that it provides high quality, value for money services. The commitments under Towards 2016 will continue to be progressed in this agreement along with additional commitments to be progressed in the Transitional Agreement. The arrangements whereby the payment of increases is dependent on the verification of satisfactory achievement of modernisation commitments, including improvements in performance and productivity, will also continue in the new agreement.