ISBN: 978-1-73931-483-5

With a foreword by former President Mary Robinson

This is an essential book for those who wish to understand the workings of Irish government today, including students of law, journalism, politics, public sector management and business studies. It is also of interest for the general reader and public service practitioners. It is written in an accessible style that assumes no prior knowledge of Irish government today.

This book explains the workings of Irish government today, reflecting recent changes across the system of government, including:

• The first-ever rotation of the Office of Taoiseach

• The Convention on the Constitution - a milestone in participative democracy

• The work of Citizens’ Assemblies in considering major public policy issues

• Significant reforms of parliamentary procedures in the Dáil

• Gender quotas resulting in long overdue increases in the numbers of women in politics

• Department of Public Expenditure and Reform with a mandate for modernisation

• The Irish Government Economic and Evaluation Service for data-driven and evidence-based policies

THE AUTHOR

John O'Toole knows the system of government intimately from within. As a career civil servant he has worked in Revenue, the Departments of Health, Finance, Foreign Affairs and Social Protection in Ireland. He is currently working as a Regional Adviser with the United Nations.

He holds a PhD from the University of Liverpool, has Master's Degrees from Trinity College Dublin and University College Dublin and is a graduate of the École Nationale d'Administration.