Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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81. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide an update on the service improvement and reform plans to be prepared by each Government Department in conjunction with his Department, as committed to in the programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25185/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for her question. Earlier this month I launched ‘Better Public Services’, the public service transformation strategy out to 2030, which is aimed at delivering for the public and building trust.

This strategy is a successor to the Our Public Service 2020programme and builds on the achievements that have been made in every facet of the Public Service in recent years. It incorporates priorities articulated in the published Public Service Innovation Strategy, Making Innovation Real,in addition to aligning with ambitions set out in the Civil Service Renewal 2030 Strategy and its three year Action Plan (Civil Service Renewal 2024), as they relate to the wider Public Service. Additionally, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer in my Department published Connecting Government 2030: A Digital and ICT Strategy for Ireland’s Public Service, which sets out an approach to deliver digital government for all, while also driving the wider GovTech priorities.

By way of providing feedback on individual organisational reforms and service improvements, Public Service Bodies will be requested to identify and prioritise actions that will help deliver the goals of 'Better Public Services'when developing their own corporate strategies and business plans, which may then subsequently be reported through annual reports.

In order to ensure coherence and support for the reform efforts across the wider Public Service, my Department coordinates the Public Service Leadership Board, which draws on senior leadership from across the Public Service to monitor and advance progress in driving transformation and reforms, as well as by working together on cross-cutting programmes at a strategic level.

I should also add that there are also a number of other reporting vehicles that require Departments and public bodies to provide updates to my Department. These include the spending review programme, performance budgeting and green budgeting programmes and the wellbeing framework, all of which are considered holistically as part of our ongoing reform agenda.