Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

209. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if his attention has been drawn to the OECD Civic Space Scans which have been carried out in Finland and Portugal (details supplied); if he will undertake to request a similar scan be carried out in Ireland by the OECD; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7825/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Officials from my Department engage with the OECD with work on civic space through the OECD Public Governance Committee and the OECD PGC Working Party on Open Government.

In December, representatives from my Department attended the report launch of ‘The Protection and Promotion of Civic Space: Strengthening Alignment with International Standards and Guidance’ which was hosted by the OECD Observatory of Civic Space. This report aims to support Members and non-Members to raise standards and improve their policies by providing an overview of the different dimensions of civic space and a wide range of measures to safeguard it. The report is based on data from a survey of 52 central governments, of which Ireland participated, and focuses on 4 key areas: the protection of civic freedoms; access to information as a right; media freedoms and civic space in the digital age; and the enabling environment for civil society. Findings from the report highlight the need for respondents to adopt a whole of government approach to protect civic space, as well as ongoing reviews of the manner in which legal frameworks governing civic space are implemented at the national level (OECD 2022: 19).

In addition to the survey on the Protection and Promotion of Civic Space, the OECD also conducts Civic Space Scans. The OECD’s civic space work is anchored in the OECD Recommendation of the Council on Open Government (OECD 2022: 20). The Recommendation defines open government as “a culture of governance that promotes the principles of transparency, integrity, accountability and stakeholder participation in support of democracy and inclusive growth” (OECD, 2017[24]). Actions to improve Civic Space in Ireland are identified through the Open Government Partnership, the secretariat of which is located in my Department. Open Government in Ireland recognises that the active engagement of citizens and civil society is an essential element to co-create and monitor the Open Government National Action Plan, which includes the following commitments:

- Progressing civic participation with the objective of further enhancing the proactive and meaningful participation and engagement with citizens in the decisions that affect them

- Strengthening inclusion and civic deliberation in local decision making

More recently, we have committed to increasing our work on civic space through the new OECD Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy Initiative. This 5 year initiative was launched with the declaration in Luxembourg in November 2022 at which my colleague Minister of State Smyth was in attendance. Officials are currently working across government on the Reinforcing Democracy Initiative, and the relevant Action Plan on Representation, Participation and Openness in Public Life of which civic space comes under. Important examples of the promotion of civic space include the continued use of The Citizens’ Assembly and Public Participation Networks (PPN). The Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy Initiative within Ireland is co-ordinated by officials in my Department who sit on the OECD Public Governance Committee.