Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 38: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the reason for the delay in drafting the document for submission to the implementation body for the first official review of the Croke Park agreement regarding the reduction of staffing levels; and when same is expected. [12612/11]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

There was no delay in submitting my Department's progress report under the Public Service (Croke Park) Agreement. It was forwarded to the Department of Finance on the 4th of May. The report outlines the significant progress made by my Department, which has been engaged in a fundamental process of re-organisation, major reductions in staffing levels and improvement of its business processes, including major changes to the local office network.

Of the 24 specific actions outlined in the plan, we have reported real progress in 20, including a reduction of 173 staff and administrative savings of nearly €14million since the end of March 2010. This brings to 1,200 the number of staff reductions achieved by my Department since 2005. These reductions have been driven by a process of re-organisation, changes in the way schemes and programmes are managed, reductions in disease levels, and advanced use of information technology. The Action Plan set out under the Public Service (Croke Park) Agreement will further deepen the change management process that is now well underway.