The Strategic Management Initiative (SMI) is to be used to devolve extra responsibility for budgets, planning and achieving gender balance. The SMI Financial Management Working Group recommendations are to be implemented. These include:
The reintroduction of an efficiency dividend for departments.
Penalties for administrative overruns.
Improving linkages between those responsible for allocating resources and those responsible for achieving targets.
Implementing the Quality Customer Service Initiative which was formally introduced in May 1997.
A high-level equality group is to be established to tackle continuing gender inequalities in the higher grades of the Civil Service.
The provisions of the Freedom of Information Act are to be extended to semi-State agencies such as FAS, Forfas, Enterprise Ireland, the IDA, the Health and Safety Authority, the Labour Relations Commission, the offices of the Telecom and Electricity industry regulators, RTE, the Arts Council, the Independent Radio and Television Commission and the universities.