FINE GAEL HAS LAUNCHED its manifesto for government called “Reinventing Government”, which includes plans to overhaul public services and get the economy “back on track”.

The plan proposes abolishing over 145 state bodies and companies, as well as dismantling the HSE and FÁS in favour of more cost-effective alternatives.

The plan also includes the following proposals:

• cutting the number of Oireachtas politicians by 35%, including 20 TDs, and abolishing the Seanad
• cutting the public service by 10% in general
• recruiting external experts on banking, taxation and macro economic forecasting to the Department of Finance
• creating an independent council to advise the Dáil on borrowing levels, debt reduction, tax planning, among other issues
• targeting waste, duplication and inefficiency in public bodies to save over €5bn
• introducing a minimum target of at least 33% of all senior public service appointments from outside the current system for five years
• lobbyists must register with the Standards in Public Office Commission
• reversing recent restrictions to the Freedom of Information Act

In his introduction to Fine Gael’s plan, party leader Enda Kenny said the plan has three objectives: “It will make our Government smaller, cheaper and better”.

Speaking at the launch of the plan, Fine Gael’s spokesperson for enterprise Richard Bruton spoke about increasing efficiency in the public sector:

Thousands of public servants are presently trapped in a system that is failing them. Fine Gael has a plan to make a step change in the way our public services are run that will reward effort and ingenuity and penalise waste and inefficiency.

Ministers and senior civil servants will evaluate projects and take responsibility for outcomes while managers will be freed up to innovate and motivate their colleagues to serve the needs of the public.