Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Independent)
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71. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the changes made by this Government to date regarding public sector reform; the planned changes for the remainder of this Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26507/14]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Since this Government took office in 2011, sustainable and far reaching Public Service Reform has been a key element of our strategy to meet the significant challenges that have faced the country.  Our commitment to reform was highlighted at the outset by the creation of a new Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

The Government published its first Public Service Reform Plan in November 2011.  A Progress Report on that Reform Plan was published in September 2012 and a second Progress Report was published in January this year.   These reports outline details of the significant progress that has been made to date on the delivery of reform.

While implementing reform at a time of increased demands on public services, we have reduced staff numbers by around 32,000 or 10% since 2008.  The Public Service Exchequer Pay Bill was reduced from €17.5 billion in 2009 to €14.1 billion in 2013, net of the pension related deduction.  New working arrangements have been introduced, including longer working hours, new rosters, and standardised arrangements for annual leave and sick leave.  We have also make strong progress on the online delivery of services, shared services and public procurement, as set out in the Progress Reports referenced above.

The Haddington Road Agreement, which came into effect on 1 July, 2013, is a key enabler of the reform programme and will deliver an additional €1 billion reduction in the cost of the Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill by 2016.  The Agreement also provides for a total of 15 million additional working hours annually across all sectors of the Public Service.

In January this year, I published the Government's new Public Service Reform Plan for 2014 to 2016.  The key objective of the new Reform Plan is to improve service delivery and achieve better outcomes for service users.  The areas addressed in the Plan include increased use of technology and improved engagement with service users; greater use of shared services and innovative approaches to service delivery; more efficient and effective public procurement and property management; increased accountability and transparency in public decision making; and a continued focus on building the required capacity and capability to deliver reform and service improvements.

The new Reform Plan and both Progress Reports on the original Reform Plan are available on my Department's website at .