Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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278. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the extent to which he remains confident that public expenditure and reform expectations remain in line with previously identified targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23100/16]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The key focus of fiscal policy over the last number of years has been to reduce the General Government Deficit in line with the targets set under the Excessive Deficit Procedure. The management of public expenditure has played an important role in ensuring that these key fiscal targets have been achieved.

Managing the delivery of public services within Budgetary allocations is a key responsibility of each Minister and their Department and measures are in place to help ensure that these budgetary targets continue to be met.  My Department is in regular communication with all Departments and Offices to ensure that expenditure is being managed within the overall fiscal parameters. The drawdown of funds from the Exchequer is monitored against the published expenditure profiles.  There is regular reporting to Government on these matters, and information is published monthly, as part of the Exchequer Statement.

As set out in the end-June 2016 Exchequer returns, total gross voted expenditure for the first half of the year amounted to €26.3.  This was €7 million behind the published profiles based on the Estimates for 2016 published in December 2015.  An additional €500 million was provided to the Department of Health in the June Estimates to deal with spending pressures including in the acute sector and to ensure service levels are maintained in relation to health and social care. Additional resources of €40 million have also been allocated to the Justice Group of Votes to support an intensified response by An Garda Síochána to the recent spate of serious crime related violence in Dublin.

As the Deputy suggests, Public Service Reform was a key element of the Government's response to the crisis and the strategy for recovery.  The reforms implemented over the past five years enabled us to maintain and improve public services in the face of the necessary reduction in staff numbers and budgets, at a time of increased demand for public services.

Significant progress has been made since the publication of the first Public Service Reform Plan in 2011. The current Public Service Reform Plan was published in January 2014 and covers the period 2014-2016.  While maintaining an emphasis on efficiency and reducing costs, this Plan puts a particular focus on improved service delivery and achieving better outcomes.  The first Progress Report on the Public Service Reform Plan 2014-2016 was published in March 2015 and can be seen on my Department's website.  The second Annual Progress Report on the Public Service Reform Plan 2014-16 published in April 2016 sets out the significant progress that has been made over the last year in implementing the cross-cutting reform actions set out in the Plan.