First Minister Alex Salmond
On Delivering More Effective Government
Holyrood Parliament
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
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Presiding Officer, this Government has made a firm commitment to simplify Scotland's public services to deliver more effective government and contribute to our core purpose - creating a more successful country by increasing sustainable economic growth.
We aim to achieve fewer national public organisations with less duplication and less bureaucracy - part of this Government's wider programme to renew and reform Scotland's public services.
Today I will set out to this Chamber how we will meet our commitment to reducing the list, which we published last October, of the 199 national public service organisations by at least 25 per cent.
Government's approach to simplification
Let me explain how the Scottish Government will approach these reforms.
Clearly our objective should not be to get numbers down to zero. Public organisations in Scotland do vital work - their functions are a necessary part of Scottish life.
Here I am thinking about roles such as protecting our natural environment, generating jobs and prosperity for the people of Scotland, and running our prisons.
This Government is acutely aware of the importance of excellent public services in supporting a strong and dynamic economy.
When we launched the Government Economic Strategy, last Autumn, we emphasised that our greatest asset is our people.
Scotland's public servants make a great contribution to our economy and society. I have often seen it reported that around half of the Scottish workforce is in the public sector. That is simply not the case.
The latest published statistics, last December, indicated that 22 per cent of Scotland's workforce is in the public sector. This is significantly lower than in recent years and includes the growing number of police, teachers and doctors delivering at the front line.
Presiding Officer, our aim is to ensure that our institutional structures are fit for a nation and an economy of 5 million people. To achieve more outcome focused, more efficient and more streamlined public services, which provide better value for the public pound.
Looking at the landscape of Scotland's public organisations today, we see a confusing array of organisational roles, remits and functions.
A complex system, which we risk being ever more concerned with talking to itself about procedure - instead of improving services and speaking directly with citizens to address their needs.
Simplification and the reduction in the number of public bodies is one strand of our overall approach to more effective Government, on which we began work immediately on entering office. Reshaping Scottish Government, with fewer departments, fewer Ministers and fewer Special Advisers.
The Government's Economic Strategy and spending review provide a coherent framework for the entire public sector with clear objectives and fewer targets.
And our move to a new outcome-based relationship with local government, will mean less bureaucracy, more effective monitoring and better public services.
Objectives of reform
In reforming Scotland's public organisations, our overall approach is:
- First, to streamline decision making and increase transparency
- Second, to bring together organisations with similar skills, expertise and processes
- Third, to stop activity that no longer contributes to the public purpose
- Fourth, to apply much tougher tests to the creation of new bodies
Achievements so far
Presiding Officer, we have already made important changes:
- The policy and delivery functions of Communities Scotland are being transferred to the Scottish Government
- We have reformed the Enterprise Networks - removing 21 Local Enterprise Companies and streamlining both Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise
- VisitScotland will rationalise its own 14 regions to six - in line with new structures in the Enterprise Networks
- We have set out our plans to create a single integrated, national sports organisation
- We are merging a range of skills and careers functions into Skills Development Scotland
- Our rural and environmental agencies have agreed to work together to develop a single rural service
- And earlier this month we announced our plans to strengthen the Children's Hearings System, a reform which has been widely welcomed and will result in significantly fewer public organisations
Proposed reforms
Today, I want to outline our further proposals. The details will be worked out in the coming months with the bodies themselves, with staff, unions and other stakeholders. And where appropriate, we will consult on specific reforms.
To better protect Scotland's marine environment and streamline services which support this vital Scottish industry, we will bring together marine management functions from across public organisations, into a single body.
Scotland's environmental research capacity will be strengthened and its international competitiveness enhanced by encouraging our environmental and rural research organisations - notably the Macaulay and Scottish Crop Research Institutes - to form a new single Institute.
We will integrate the Fisheries Electricity Committee with the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency.
We will merge the Deer Commission with Scottish Natural Heritage. Scottish Natural Heritage will also take sole responsibility for advising Government on Sites of Special Scientific Interest. And we will bring the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency into the Scottish Government.
To integrate planning, architecture and building standards, we will bring the Scottish Building Standards Agency into the Scottish Government - as part of an integrated Directorate for the Built Environment.
We will also examine the scope to simplify and increase joined up decision making across the public sector functions involved in considering development proposals.
Our proposals also include a new streamlined and more consistent approach to advisory functions across Government. We will abolish the Historic Environment Advisory Council, the Building Standards Advisory Committee and the Scottish Records Advisory Council.
And following reform of the Enterprise Networks we will abolish the Scottish Industrial Development Advisory Board.
We also propose to establish the General Teaching Council for Scotland as a self-regulating, profession-led body, along the lines of the General Medical Council.
We plan to bring together the Public Transport Users Committee and the Mobility and Access Committee into a single body to represent the interests of all transport users in Scotland engaging with key stakeholders to ensure with our view that this change strengthens the voice of people with travel accessibility and mobility issues.
Areas for further work
There are also some important areas where further work is needed.
Our National Collections play a vital role in our cultural life. I have asked them to look at how they can work more closely together to strengthen their impact in their national role, in supporting collections activity throughout Scotland, and in presenting Scotland abroad.
Public safety is our top priority in dealing with high risk offenders. We will review the role of the Risk Management Authority to determine whether integrating the functions into other bodies would improve the effectiveness of our systems. We will review the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board.
We will also look at the case for an integrated Tribunal Service for Scotland. For example, we do not believe that it requires a separate agency to provide the administrative support to the Mental Health Tribunal. A final decision about the future of this function will be made following the review of Tribunals.
Scrutiny and Complaints
And earlier this month, we published our response to Professor Crerar's Review into the scrutiny of public services.
This Government will work with Parliament's corporate body and with local government on proposals to reform this complex area. To achieve both a radical reform of how scrutiny operates and to achieve a substantial reduction in the number of organisations with a scrutiny role. We will set out further details later this year.
As a first step, we are announcing today changes to scrutiny of the Fire and Rescue Services.
Impact of the changes
Presiding Officer, I am pleased to say to the Chamber that these proposals represent the most ambitious drive to reduce Government bureaucracy since devolution.
I have to tell the Chamber the proposals that the Government is presenting do not actually meet our commitment to a 25 per cent reduction in the number of public bodies.
They will exceed it, at 26 per cent.
And if we include the reduction of Justice of the Peace Advisory Committees, which took effect in December, this will mean a 39 per cent reduction in the 199 organisations.
By 2011, this will bring the number of national public organisations to around 120 - the lowest number since devolution.
And this is not our final position. After appropriate consultation with stakeholders, further reforms to scrutiny and complaints organisations, to tribunals and other strands of further work set out today, will bring this figure down further.
Finance
The rationale for these reforms is simpler and more effective Government. In a tough financial climate we also need to increase the productivity of the public sector with challenging Efficient Government targets.
This package will make a significant contribution to the efficiency gains of around £25 million, required under efficient government from the bodies directly affected by these changes.
The savings made will be available to support improved services.
But our drive for more effective government will also produce substantial savings in the wider economy by making it easier and quicker to deal with the public sector.
Consider the scale of what could be achieved.
If simpler, more effective government could raise the productivity of Scotland's private sector by just 1 per cent, the increased benefit to Scotland's economy would be around £800 million.
Impact of Change
Our aim is clear: we want a simple and effective public sector - one that is focussed and delivers results and helps facilitate growth in Scotland's economy. Let me illustrate this with some specific examples.
A sheep farmer in the North of Scotland is currently subject to separate visits from the Scottish Government and SEPA in relation to sheep identification and sheep dip disposal. Our proposals for a single rural service would cut the number of visits for this purpose across Scotland each year from almost 450 to around 100.
On the marine front, an aquaculture development may require six consents. Better integrating marine management will streamline these services to customers.
Even the simplest planning applications for a rural housing development can involve up to half a dozen public agencies - in addition to the local authority - all working with different perspectives, procedures and deadlines.
And looking closer to home, even my predecessor's plan for a flag pole at Bute House required both a planning consent and a listed building consent. And there is still no flagpole at Bute House.
Turning away from the impact on our economy, let me give you an example of the potential of simplification for some of the most vulnerable in our society.
In looking at the scope for streamlining, one area of Scotland reported that it could require 29 separate local processes, 63 possible meetings and 108 different documents to discuss needs and agree action for a single child. An over complex process which is being streamlined and will be enhanced further for the most vulnerable by our changes to the children's hearings system.
Impact on Staff
Presiding Officer, governments north and south of the border are embarking on programmes to achieve more effective government. But there is a vital difference in our approach. Let me make this absolutely clear.
That is, that we in the Scottish Government are honouring our commitment to no compulsory redundancies.
Large-scale reform of the public sector is best achieved where the valuable and valued public service staff have security and can continue to focus on their core role: delivering for our citizens.
Public Appointments
Our changes will result in a reduction of nine publicly appointed boards. This means approximately 90 fewer public appointments across Scotland. Looking at advertising costs alone this would save around £250,000.
Relationship with public organisations
We will transform the Government's relationship with public bodies - with clear lines of accountability, a stronger focus on outcomes and better coordination of the work of government.
We have delivered greater flexibility for local government through the introduction of outcome agreements. We will now extend this outcome-based approach to national public bodies.
Implementation and timing
We will deliver this package of reform by 2011. Some of the changes will be made within the next year. Some others, particularly those requiring legislation, will take longer. Later this year we will bring forward proposals for the necessary legislation.
We will work closely with and support the leaders of our public organisations in implementing these changes, to ensure that the reform delivers clear benefits for their customers.
And we will engage with staff, trade unions, local government and other stakeholders to ensure that the changes are well designed and implemented.
Conclusion
The package of changes will make a real difference to public services in Scotland. Together, they will improve responsiveness, and build a simple, effective government. This impact will be felt across a wide sweep of public services from housing to enterprise, from marine management to children's services.
Presiding Officer, this Government is making reform a reality. We want to build a new, simpler and better model of government in Scotland - for better value for money, better quality of service, better governance and better outcomes for the people of Scotland.
Those priorities are our priorities. I trust they will command the support of this Parliament.