TAOISEACH-DESIGNATE Brian Cowen has promised "decisive action" in response to a challenging Government-commissioned OECD report on public service reform. Having adopted the late Sean Lemass as his role model, it will be his first big political test.
As was the case when Lemass finally replaced Eamon de Valera as taoiseach in 1959, there is an urgent need to inject new ways of doing things into the economic and administrative systems.
Before advisory and implementation groups are selected, however, and vested interests rally in defence of the status quo, the Minister for Finance should do one simple thing. He can abolish all charges for Freedom of Information requests. He can extend the public's right to know across all State agencies. Such action will not fully reverse the secrecy measures introduced by Charlie McCreevy five years ago. But it will show his determination to bring about change. The OECD says this step will encourage social cohesion, efficiency and trust in government, while helping to minimise corruption. Could Mr Cowen argue against that?
Evasion of responsibility has been the hallmark of recent governments. This has taken the form of ministers appointing State agencies at arms-length to take responsibility for politically sensitive decisions. Two hundred such bodies were established within the past 10 years and the majority are not directly answerable to the Dáil or to the Ombudsman. The largest of these, the Health Service Executive, is obliged to provide an increasing level of service with quite inadequate financial resources. It is incredible that Taoiseach Bertie Ahern - who presided over this mushroom-like growth of agencies - should suggest there were now "too many by half", as if it had nothing to do with him.
Restructuring, amalgamating or abolishing some of the 800 State agencies that now exist is a "no brainer". Nobody even knows how many people are employed in the sector or how money is spent there. But such action will not cut to the heart of the problem. An administrative shambles within and between government and the public service is reflected in poor planning, inter-departmental friction, weak central oversight and financial waste. It has to be addressed on a systemic basis and the measures should include removal of the artificial glass wall that separates the civil and public service. The movement of generalist staff across all sectors would create opportunity, flexibility and a unified public service labour market.
The likelihood of this happening is remote, given the Government's tendency to cherry-pick from OECD recommendations. Last week, a suggestion that housing subsidies be withdrawn was ignored. Now, warnings that dislocation and fragmentation could result from a badly planned decentralisation programme are being dismissed. Public transport workers in Dublin are still dictating the reform agenda. Programmes for e-government and educational planning are marking time. Waste management remains a mess. As the social partners engage in a new round of negotiations, Mr Cowen has a great deal to think about.