Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 88: To ask the Minister for Finance the position regarding the Croke Park agreement; if he has received implementation plans for this agreement from his Department and each State agency under his remit; the status of these implementation plans; the discussion he has had with the EU and IMF regarding the agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29685/11]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Under the Public Service Agreement 2010-2014, detailed action plans have been developed across each sector of the public service to underpin the change and reform process envisaged by the Agreement. The Action Plans were first developed in October 2010 and subsequently revised in January 2011. Public service bodies in each sector were required to prepare their first detailed report on the progress being made in implementing their Action Plans last May and this formed part of the first annual review of the Agreement undertaken by the Implementation Body.

The second phase of progress reporting on the Agreement is under way at present. The Department of Finance will be submitting a return to the Implementation Body as part of this process. The return will reflect the functions of the Department of Finance following the establishment of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. It should be noted that it is the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform which has the responsibility for receiving the implementation plans for each Department and State Agency as well as the onward transmission to the Implementation Body of the aggregate material.

Sectors are due to submit updated progress reports to the Implementation Body during October. These sectoral reports will be examined by the Body and published on its website (www.implementationbody.gov.ie). It is expected that action plans will need to be revisited later in the year when decisions have been taken by Government on the Comprehensive Review of Expenditure.

The Government has indicated that the Public Service Agreement represents a key enabler to meeting its fiscal targets under its obligations under the EU/IMF Joint Programme of Assistance. The quarterly returns made to date by the Government under the Programme on public service numbers and the pay bill have indicated that the numbers of public servants are falling and we are on track to meet the existing target of 302,000 public service posts by end 2011. Similarly, the Exchequer pay bill return for the first six months is in line with the 2011 pay bill targets. The Government has indicated that it wishes to honour the commitments given in the Public Service Agreement. However, this will only be possible if the Agreement is implemented in full.