Enda Kenny to rule out return to ‘old culture’ of cosy deals on public policy

Taoiseach Enda Kenny will today tell an employers' group the Coalition will not return to the "old culture" of deals struck between interest groups and the Government on matters of public policy.

Mr Kenny will make his comments at an Ibec event this morning following proposals from Minister for Public Expenditure Brendan Howlin and Minster for Finance Michael Noonan for an open forum to discuss issues like spending, tax and pay.

However, Government figures are stressing the forum – the National Economic Dialogue – will not be a return to full-blown social partnership.

Mr Kenny will underline this message in his Ibec address and will say the “behind closed doors” model of social partnership negotiations, which the Taoiseach will say did not serve the country well in the past, is gone.

Committed to reform

He will also claim the Coalition remains committed to reform on the basis of accountability and transparency.

Government sources said there will be no return to centralised pay bargaining and said the new forum will provide an opportunity for various groups to have their say in a reformed budgetary process. The Government will still make budgetary decisions and is merely inviting opinions, said one source. The forum, expected to take place in Dublin Castle in June, is likely to consist of sessions, which will be open to the media, over a few days. It will not preclude groups or organisations making pre-budget submissions later in the year.

New budgetary process

The Coalition envisages the new budgetary process as four parts: a new “spring statement” setting out economic parameters; the forum initiative in or around June; an assessment of proposals, including the Government’s, by a budgetary statistics office later in the summer; and finally the budget itself in October.

Speaking yesterday, Mr Noonan said the issue of public-sector pay will be dealt with separately in discussions Mr Howlin will have with unions, on unwinding the financial emergency in the public interest measures undertaken in recent years. The National Economic Dialogue proposal will be the subject of a joint memo from Mr Noonan and Mr Howlin in the coming weeks.

Mr Noonan briefed his Cabinet colleagues on the initiative and Fine Gael sources said there are no major problems with the proposed measures.