Assessing the state of social justice in Irish public administration

Abstract

Chapter 6 offers a more detailed examination of the role of the Irish public administration system in promoting social justice. It draws on a range of primary and secondary sources to assess its contribution focusing on the interrelated themes of knowledge; disposition and capacity, all three being required to enable a stronger social justice orientation. This examination concludes that within Irish public administration, at corporate and individual level, social justice does not enjoy a particularly high level of visibility or status. Instead, evidence drawn from Departmental Strategy Statements, local authority corporate plans, the observations of a range a senior officials, both current and former, as well as civil society leaders, indicates that social justice has been and continues to be largely subservient to other developmental priorities and is seen as something of a luxury at the present moment. The chapter concludes that absence of any meaningful plans to encourage a stronger disposition or to extend capacity in this area leaves little prospect that this status quo will change.