HOW DO you promote administrative change and ethical behaviour without accountability? And how can the public actively support such positive developments without specific knowledge of structural and managerial shortcomings and dogged resistance to reform? The blunt answer is that effective change requires both transparency and accountability.
The latter is a concept that has been lacking in the administration of public and private organisations in this State. The Government should address its pre-election promises to make individuals and organisations responsible for their actions.
One of the most glaring examples of political spinelessness can be found in legislation that established the Office of the Financial Services Ombudsman in 2004. Under pressure from the industry, the government banned publication of the records and names of those financial institutions that were found to have abused the trust of customers. About one-quarter of all formal complaints are upheld each year and for much the same reasons. But because the institutions involved cannot be named and shamed by the financial ombudsman there is no real incentive to modify their ways or to respond more appropriately to consumers. Ombudsman William Prasifka complained again this year about the manner in which his office and its adjudications are being ignored and asked that the legislation be amended to allow for the identification of financial institutions and their complaint histories. Surely this appeal on behalf of consumers cannot be ignored?
Of more immediate concern is the attitude adopted by Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin in relation to a review of public spending. Having conceded that some Government departments had been more creative and rigorous than others in finding ways in which necessary savings could be made, he declined to identify the recalcitrant departments. Instead, he suggested that Michael Noonan and himself would make “robust suggestions” that would be formally agreed in Cabinet.
This reluctance to name names and to hold Ministers and their departmental heads to account is one of the reasons the country is in a mess. When things go wrong, on the financial, educational or health fronts, the fault is invariably found to be systemic; no individual is to blame and the whole charade continues. Taoiseach Enda Kenny undertook to introduce legislation that would clearly separate the responsibility of Ministers from that of officials and provide a range of sanctions in cases of mismanagement.
The longer this Government continues in office, the less likely it becomes that the enthusiasm felt for reform in opposition will be acted upon. That would be a serious mistake. Irish politics requires a major overhaul, as does the administrative system of government. Being required to take personal responsibility for significant decisions and actions is the first step towards a more mature and responsive democracy.