Written answers
Wednesday, 21 April 2021
Department of Public Expenditure and Reform
Departmental Data
Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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560. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform further to Parliamentary Question No. 253 of 24 February 2021, if the list of publication dates for each of the 22 live studies, reviews and research projects commissioned by him will be provided; and if a brief description of the work being undertaken will be provided in tabular form. [19777/21]
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Further to my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 241 (Proof No. 253) of 24 February 2021, the tables below outline the information requested by the Deputy as it relates to my Department and the Office of Government Procurement, which is also part of my Department.
Department of Public Expenditure and Reform
| Purpose of review / research / study | Brief Description of work undertaken | Expected to be complete |
|---|---|---|
| Programme for Government Commitment to reform and consolidate the ethics in public office legislation | A full review of current ethics legislation (the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995 and the Standards in Public Office Act 2001), and the (now lapsed) Public Sector Standards Bill 2015, has been initiated by the Department. As part of the initial phase, current international best practice in the area of ethics structures and guidance has been researched and a section by section review of the 2015 Bill has been undertaken. | December 2021 |
| Review of certain aspects of the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 | Review commenced of issues raised by the Standards in Public Office (SIPO) and contained in Private Members Bills on lobbying. | August 2021 |
| Research on measuring the benefits and impact of Ireland’s Open Data Initiative | A Science Foundation Ireland funded researcher has been appointed to the Open Data Unit to research how open data is being utilised by business, civil society and within the public service to assess and determine the economic, political and social benefits. The project commenced in December 2020 with the final report due by December 2022. | December 2022 |
| Civil Service Employee Engagement Survey - To measure employee engagement in the Irish civil service. | The Survey asks civil servants for their views on working in the Civil Service, focusing on areas such as employee engagement, well-being, coping with change and commitment to the organisation. The most recent survey, which will be published shortly, included a module on remote working. The survey was completed by 26,882 civil servants equating to a 65% response rate. | April 2021 |
| Review of Civil Service Organisational Design and Structures | A review of the organisational structure and design of the Irish Civil Service under the EU Commission’s Technical Support Programme is underway. This includes interviews with stakeholders, an online survey and focus groups with staff from across the Civil Service. | September 2021 |
| Spending Review – A key platform for evidence informed policy making across the Civil Service | The spending review papers to be published in 2021 will contain a range of analysis relevant to key policy areas including, but not limited to, health, education, social protection, justice, climate change and transport. This work aims to provide an evidence base that can support decision making across these and other key policy areas. Further detail on the spending review process can be found by visiting the Gov.ie Spending Review Website - . | July and October 2021 |
| Upgrading of Budgeting/Financial Management Systems and Processes in Support of Performance-Related Budgeting (Incorporating Equality/Gender Budgeting, Green/Climate Budgeting, SDG Budgeting, Wellbeing Budgeting and Programme Evaluation) | The Structural Reform Support Programme (SRSP) is an EU programme that provides tailor-made support to all EU countries for their institutional, administrative and growth-enhancing reforms. In October 2019, my Department applied for funding to develop our Performance Budgeting Framework and systems. In early 2020, it was confirmed that this application had been successful. This project aims to create a new architecture for Performance Budgeting that brings together Green Budgeting, Equality Budgeting, Well-being Budgeting and SDG Budgeting. Establishing coherence between these streams can bring to light the impact of public services on the citizen, adding clarity to Government priorities, eliminating departmental silos through cross-cutting goals based on outcomes, and placing the emphasis on overall societal well-being. | Estimated June 2022 |
| Report of the Working Group on Financial Reporting Standards (FRS 102) ‘Employee Benefits in the Public Service’ | On foot of developments and complexities regarding the adoption of FRS 102 for public sector bodies, my Department established a working group comprising of representatives from relevant Government Departments and the Office of the Comptroller Auditor General (OCAG). The purpose of the ‘Working Group on Financial Reporting Standard (FRS) 102 ‘Employee Benefits’ in the Public Service’ was to review the application of FRS 102 ‘Employee Benefits’ in the public service, including examining the issues surrounding current and future pension liability reporting in certain public service bodies. A report which sets out the main findings of the working group in relation to the financial reporting of pensions under FRS 102 ‘Employee Benefits’ in the public service will be published in December 2021. | December 2021 |
| Macro-economic Context for the National Development Plan | A summary of this paper, along with key findings have been published in the Phase 1 Report of the National Development Plan Review. Link to the full review is below. | Completed end March 2021 |
| A Review of the Alignment between the National Development Plan and the National Planning Framework | A summary of this paper, along with key findings have been published in the Phase 1 Report of the National Development Plan Review. Link to the full review is below. | Completed end March 2021 |
| Capacity and Demand Analysis for Capital Investment | A summary of this paper, along with key findings have been published in the Phase 1 Report of the National Development Plan Review. Link to the full review is below. | Completed end March 2021 |
| Capital Project and Programme Capability Review | A summary of this paper, along with key findings have been published in the Phase 1 Report of the National Development Plan Review. Link to the full review is below. | Completed end March 2021 |
| A Review of Public-Private Partnership Policy for the National Development Plan | A summary of this paper, along with key findings have been published in the Phase 1 Report of the National Development Plan Review. Link to the full review is below. | Completed end March 2021 |
| Final Phase 1 Report of the National Development Plan | This report has been published on the Departmental website on April 4th 2021. The link to the full Report: | Completed end March 2021 |
| Review of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report of the River Bride (Blackpool, Co Cork) required under the Arterial Drainage Acts (as amended). | The Environmental Impact Assessment Report and Natura Impact Statement prepared by the OPW in the course of the development of a flood scheme must, by law, be reviewed by a suitably qualified person in advance of any Ministerial decision in relation to the confirmation (or not) of the scheme. As this expertise is not available in the Department, this service must be sourced externally. | Completed March 2021 |
| Review of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report of the River Slaney (Enniscorthy, Co Wexford) required under the Arterial Drainage Acts (as amended). | The Environmental Impact Assessment Report and Natura Impact Statement prepared by the OPW in the course of the development of a flood scheme must, by law, be reviewed by a suitably qualified person in advance of any Ministerial decision in relation to the confirmation (or not) of the scheme. As this expertise is not available in the Department, this service must be sourced externally. | To be confirmed |
| Review of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report of the River Deel (Crossmolina, Co Mayo) required under the Arterial Drainage Acts (as amended). | The Environmental Impact Assessment Report and Natura Impact Statement prepared by the OPW in the course of the development of a flood scheme must, by law, be reviewed by a suitably qualified person in advance of any Ministerial decision in relation to the confirmation (or not) of the scheme. As this expertise is not available in the Department, this service must be sourced externally. | To be confirmed |
Office of Government Procurement
| Purpose of review/research/study | Brief Description of work undertaken | Expected to be complete (date) |
|---|---|---|
| Review of inflation provisions in contracts published under the Capital Works Management Framework (CWMF) | Initial research to review the inflation provisions in the CWMF contracts has been completed by consultants. Consultation yet to commence with stakeholders and implementation will be undertaken upon the conclusion of the consultation process. | September 2021 |
| Review of Professional Indemnity Insurance requirements under the Capital Works Management Framework | Engagement with the insurance sector and construction industry stakeholders has taken place to establish the issues that are driving cost increases and the reduction in cover available. Recommendations are being prepared in consultation with the State Claims Agency. | June 2021 |
| Consultant Engagement Review under the Capital Works Management Framework (CWMF) | The focus of the review is on the procurement of consultancy services under the CWMF. A position paper has been published and further papers are being prepared in advance of engagement with industry stakeholders. | Engagement with industry stakeholders to commence in May |
| Review of the operation of the roles of the Standing Conciliator and Project Board (introduced by the OGP in 2016), relative to dispute resolution procedures in the public works contracts. | There are two stages to the review. Consultants have been appointed to undertake research. Initial research constitutes stage 1 - Expressions of interest to participate in the review have been sought, questionnaires have been prepared and issued. Compilation of the responses and follow up interviews will be undertaken before a report is compiled.Stage 2 of the review – the Government Construction Contracts Committee (GCCC) will consider the report and identify further steps. | December 2021 (completion of stage 1 review) |
| Client Satisfaction Survey | The purpose of this piece of research was engage with the OGP client base i.e. Public Sector Bodies, to measure awareness and understanding of the OGP role; identify drivers and barriers to usage of OGP services; explore current perceptions of the OGP and their services; and measure satisfaction levels with all key touchpoints including the OGP Website, Helpdesk, Procurement Services, Key Account Managers, Procurement Guidelines and Template Documents. This research builds on a similar exercise conducted in 2018 which provided a benchmark with which the results of the 2020 survey could be measured. | The survey has now closed and results were presented to the OGP in January 2021. |
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