‘An Bord Snip’ – some general comments

First, maybe a word of explanation for any non-Irish readers. What has popularly been called ‘An Bord Snip Nua’ is in fact the ‘Special Group on Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes’. This was established by the Irish Minister for Finance in late 2008 as part of the government’s developing strategy on containing public expenditure. As its main task it was asked to ‘identify specific options for reducing current spending and the numbers employed in the public service.’

The report was drawn up over several months and was (with more detailed appendices described as ‘detailed papers’) recently submitted to the government. At first it was unclear whether its content and recommendations would be kept secret, but at its meeting on Tuesday of this week the cabinet decided that it should be published, and this has now been done.

In essence the recommendations contained in the report set a framework for the development and containment of public services and administration in Ireland. The implications go far beyond the sums that may be saved, and move into both general strategy and policy and, perhaps, ideology. Whatever decisions the government now takes in responding to the recommendations will shape the Irish state for a generation to come.

This latter aspect – the frame of reference of the report – is something I will comment on on a later date. For now in the next two posts, I am going to focus on two aspects of the report’s recommendations on higher education: (i) staffing in the sector, and (ii) research funding. The recommendations on both of these have the capacity to change fundamentally our acquired understanding of the main objectives of universities and of the direction of the Irish economy.

But it is worth noting, in passing for now, that there are other fundamental issues raised, including the overall institutional shape and structure of higher education. I had already in an earlier post foreshadowed the recommendation on the Higher Education Authority – and the report now proposes to merge the HEA with the Department of Education and Science – and here my arguments from that post hold: I cannot see this saving any money whatsoever, while creating a much less enterprising context for the future. There are also recommendations on realignments and mergers in the sector, particularly effecting some institutes of technology. More on that another day.

But perhaps it is worth making one more general point. Overall, these are harsh and difficult recommendations, affecting the whole public sector in Ireland. There will be strong and indignant opposition to quite a lot of it. As it happens, to my mind there are quite a few recommendations across the report which disclose a poor understanding of the purpose of the public service and its potential. But there is another dimension to all this: we have no choice, money will need to be saved, and at this order of magnitude there are no easy options. Whatever is proposed, and regardless of who might be proposing it, it would be very very painful. What is probably instinctive to all of us – that we know we need to cut but really it shouldn’t affect us in our particular concerns – is not a viable position. So we need to respond constructively. And one way or another, the savings will have to be found.

These really are interesting times.

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Tags: An Bord Snip Nua, Report of Special Group on Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes

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