Michael Colreavy (Sligo-North Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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Question 80: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the enhanced measures of accountability of senior civil and public sector management and office holders he has put in place. [3802/12]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Senior public service managers are accountable to the Oireachtas through their appearances before Select Committees and the Public Accounts Committee. They are also subject to rigorous independent examination of regularity, propriety and value for money by the Comptroller and Auditor General who carries out individual VFM examinations on the economy and efficiency with which a public body uses its resources. Public servants are also subject to wider scrutiny through the operation of the Freedom of Information legislation and the work of the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Public Service Management Act 1997 requires Secretaries General and Heads of Office to prepare and report on Statements of Strategy, and makes them more directly responsible and accountable for the day-to-day management of their Departments/Offices. Such responsibilities and accountability can in turn be assigned to other officials.

The Statements of Strategy set out clearly the high-level objectives against which the performance of Departments and other public service organisations will be assessed. In particular, the annual Estimates of Expenditure for 2012 are being re-cast to ensure full alignment with the Statements of Strategy, and to include performance information against each of the high-level objectives (or strategic "programmes"). This approach, referred to as 'performance budgeting', was piloted successfully for the Finance, Public Expenditure & Reform and Agriculture Groups of Votes in 2011, and is being rolled out more generally for the 2012 Estimates. The overall intention, in line with Government Programme commitments, is to heighten the focus upon overall performance and delivery by Departments and Offices, and improve accountability by office-holders for the achievement of results.

The Performance Management & Development System (PMDS) which applies in the Civil Service places a strong emphasis on individual performance and accountability through the setting of goals and the monitoring of performance. The integration of this system with other Human Resource processes increases the level of accountability for individuals. My Department has recently introduced changes to PMDS that streamline the process and make it a more useful tool for the management of performance. My Department will continue to review the effectiveness of performance management and develop new ways to strengthen management capability.

In addition, the Programme for Government contains a commitment to legislate for a reformulated code of laws, replacing both the Ministers and Secretaries Acts and the Public Service Management Act, on the legal relationship between Ministers and their civil servants and their legal accountability for decisions and for management of Departments. Work in ongoing in my Department in this area. I remain committed to bringing forward the reform required in the context of commitments on accountability arrangements, as set out in the Programme for Government. Legislative change to clarify accountability arrangements is a key initiative of the Government's Public Service Reform Plan that was published in November 2011.