Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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153. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the role he expects reform throughout the public sector to impact on economic performance in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53938/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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156. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the extent to which he expects reform to remain part of economic strategy affecting the public or indirectly in the private sector in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53941/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 153 and 156 together.

Public service reform has been a central element in the response to the challenges of recent years and remains an essential part of building for the future. The reform programme has been delivering for the Irish public for 6 years – since the first reform plan was launched in 2011. We have achieved much to transform our public services in that time and are building a resilient and responsive public service that can meet the challenges of the future while delivering quality services. However, the world is changing fast. Today’s uncertain and unpredictable global environment poses significant challenges for Ireland.

As the Deputy will be aware, a new phase for public service reform was set out in the framework Our Public Service 2020 published earlier this week. Our Public Service 2020aims to deliver better outcomes for the public, to support innovation and collaboration and to build public service organisations that are resilient and agile. Implementation of the actions in Our Public Service 2020will have an ongoing positive impact on economic performance in the future.

Our Public Service 2020aims to strongly link expenditure with reform. This is to ensure that real reform is delivered and that there is a continued emphasis on ensuring value-for-money principles are adhered to across the public service. Ensuring value for the taxpayer is an important element of managing the costs of public services and maintaining stable public finances.

Our Public Service 2020, allows the public and businesses to have greater input into the planning, design, implementation and review of public services. Public service reform remains part of the Government’s economic strategy and will enable us to continue to improve outcomes for the public.

Shared ownership of the framework and committed leadership will be essential to ensure successful delivery of the actions in the new framework. For this first time, both civil service and public service leaders are directly involved in the public service reform governance structures. I believe that this will be key to ensuring the successful implementation of the new framework and to achieving the best possible outcomes for our economy and for the public.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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154. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the extent to which all bodies throughout the public sector, through reform or otherwise, are being rewarded through FEMPI; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53939/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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159. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the extent to which he expects those sectors and unions throughout the public sector to benefit from FEMPI or otherwise from the sacrifices they made during the downturn in the economy with a view to ensuring full restoration within a reasonable period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53944/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 154 and 159 together.

Last September the Public Services Committee of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions endorsed the terms of the recently negotiated extension to the Lansdowne Road Agreement, the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018-2020 (PSSA) on pay and reform in the public service.

On Thursday 7 December the Dail passed the Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill, and it now sits before the Seanad for consideration. This Bill provides for the implementation of the terms of the PSSA.

The PSSA will run from 2018 to 2020 by which point pay will be fully restored to all public servants earning up to €70,000 which is equal to almost 90 per cent of public servants. Benefits to different income groups are progressive and weighted towards the lower paid with pay increases ranging from 7.4 per cent to 6.2 per cent over three years.

This Agreement achieves the right balance between addressing the legitimate expectations of public service workers for increases in their pay and ensuring that the Government continues to exercise a prudent approach to the overall management of our public finances while securing industrial peace to support the ongoing delivery and reform of our public services.

The improvements in pay provided for in this Agreement mark another important step in the gradual normalisation of our collective bargaining approach to pay arrangements in the public service through the process of unwinding the FEMPI legal framework on pay that has been in place for the last number of years.

A copy of the Agreement can be found on the Department's website: .

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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155. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he is satisfied that all bodies impacted by cutbacks in the public sector are likely to receive recognition and recompense in the near future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53940/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy is referring to private sector organisations in the Voluntary and Community Sector in respect of which my Department has not actual corporate responsibility or direct involvement. As non public servants, the staff of such organisations, which may exceed 100,000 in number, did not, for example, fall within the application of the FEMPI legislation involving as it did the reduction in pay and increase in pension contribution for public servants. It is correspondingly the case that current public service pay policy does not extend to such organisations.

It will be appreciated that such entities are accordingly self governing and accountable for the management of their own internal financial resources. While it is the case that certain or indeed, in some cases, all of these financial resources may come from government funding it remains the position that decisions on pay expenditure issues arising in such entities are matters that are determined at the discretion of the management authorities of each of the organisations concerned. The issue of pay is just one important challenge within a complex mix of other challenges and demands that the individual organisations concerned are required to decide upon and manage. Having regard therefore to these circumstances it is a matter for each of these private sector organisations to resolve the financial challenges that they may face in accordance with the financial resources available to them, whatever the source may be of such funding arrangements.

It is also important to note that in respect of Section 39 organisations, which are private sector concerns and a significant part of this sector, funding of almost €1billion was provided by the State in 2016. It is furthermore the case that Exchequer funding for Section 39 organisations has increased by over 15% between 2014 and 2016.