The Task Force on the Public Service was established in May 2008 by the Taoiseach, Mr. Brian Cowen, T.D., to develop an Action Plan for the Public Service drawing on the analysis and recommendations of the OECD Review of the Public Service.
The Task Force was asked to outline:
- A set of criteria to inform the way in which the business of government is structured and organised, with a strategy to enable necessary changes to be planned and implemented successfully;
- The benefits of greater use of shared services across all sectors of the Public Service; and
- An appropriate framework for the establishment, operation and governance of State agencies.
In addition, the Task Force was asked to develop:
- A strategy by which e-government delivers coherent and citizen-focused services, and more closely supports greater efficiency in administrative processes; and
- An implementation plan, specifying the tasks and responsibilities necessary for the successful implementation of the renewal agenda, including the ways in which the principle of partnership with public servants and their representatives will be applied.
Terms of Reference of the Task Force
The Terms of Reference for the Task Force were to prepare for consideration by the Government a comprehensive framework for renewal of the Public Service, which takes into account the analysis and conclusions of the OECD Report, Towards an Integrated Public Service, as well as the lessons to be drawn from the Strategic Management Initiative, the Organisational Review Programme and the Efficiency Review Process, and to recommend, in particular, how best to secure:
- An overarching policy for an integrated Public Service that enables increased flexibility, mobility and staff development and supports the competencies and practices necessary for new networked ways of working within and across the broader Public Service;
- The basis for determining the contribution that a Senior Public Service could make to an integrated and cohesive Public Service.
The membership of the Task Force included:
- Dermot McCarthy, Secretary General to the Government (Chair);
- Ciarán Connolly, Secretary General (PSMD), Department of Finance;
- Paul Haran, Principal, College of Business and Law, UCD;
- Brigid McManus, Secretary General, Department of Education & Science;
- John Moloney, Group Managing Director, Glanbia PLC;
- Breege O'Donoghue, Director, Penneys Primark;
- Mark Ryan, Country Managing Director, Accenture;
- Geraldine Tallon, Secretary General, Department of Environment, Heritage & Local Government; and
- Michael Scanlan, Secretary General, Department of Health & Children.
In addition, as part of the development of its Report, the Task Force engaged with a number of key stakeholders concerned with the shape of the successful implementation of the renewal agenda, as well as its impact on stakeholders within the Public Service, non-governmental organisations and citizens. These stakeholders included:
- Association of Chief Executives of State Agencies;
- Association of County & City Councils;
- Association of Municipal Authorities of Ireland;
- County and City Managers' Association;
- Public Service Committee, ICTU;
- Lt. Gen. Dermot Earley, Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces; and
- Ms. Sylda Langford, Office of the Minister for Children.
To see the Taoiseach's speech from the launch of the Report on 26th Nov 2008, or any previous speeches click on www.taoiseach.gov.ie
The Report of the Task Force on the Public Service: 'Transforming Public Services - Citizen Centred - PerformanceFocused' was published in November 2008. The Government has adopted the Task Force's Report, and has set out measures in its Policy Statement on Transforming Public Services to radically transform the Public Service over a three-year timeframe.