Trailer: Memo to File

Bord Snip: How to Manage Public Spending

Economist Colm McCarthy discusses infrastructure delivery, fiscal prudence, populism, accountability and more. McCarthy was a member of the Expenditure Review Committee, often referred to as An Bord Snip, which was an advisory group established during a period of economic downturn in the 1980s to make recommendations to the the Irish government on cuts to state spending. Colm later chaired the Special Group on Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes, more commonly known as An Bord Snip Nua, which was a similar government advisory committee established following the financial crash in 2008. Clip of former Taoiseach Charles Haughey's "living beyond our means" address courtesy of RTE Archives [https://www.rte.ie/archives/2015/0109/671262-haughey-warns-we-are-living-beyond-our-means/].

Global Crossing: How Ireland Invested in the Internet

Former Secretary General Brendan Tuohy discusses the Global Crossing project. With major backing from the Irish government, Global Crossing involved building two transatlantic fibre-optic cables and compatible landing points in Ireland. The Irish government pre-purchased capacity on the cables as an anchor customer, with major multinationals and telecoms carriers expected to buy the capacity later. Ultimately, the Global Crossing project contributed to Ireland being an international connectivity hub with direct and cost-effective transatlantic fibre links. Tuohy also speaks about broader topics such as trust, collaboration and accountability. For our digest segment, Conor Igoe considers the significance of Global Crossing today in the context of artificial intelligence. Credits: RTE Archives.

Cerebral Palsy Programme of Excellence: How to Scale Specialist Healthcare

Lily Collison and Professor Jennifer Ryan discuss the Cerebral Palsy Programme of Excellence, a five-year initiative that is improving care for those with cerebral palsy in Ireland. The Programme of Excellence is advancing a national register and advocacy group, in addition to supporting the development of a coordinated, evidence-based approach to care and research. Lily Collison co-founded the Cerebral Palsy Programme of Excellence and serves on its Steering Group. Jennifer Ryan is one of the three leads of the Cerebral Palsy Programme of Excellence, with a particular focus on CP in adulthood. She is also the Director of the CP-Life Research Centre at the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland. Junior doctor Beth Mallen joins us for the digest segment. Archival clip during introduction: Then-Minister for Health, Mary Harney, discussing the Irish health system in a Progressive Democrats podcast.

Luas: How Modern Light Rail Came to Dublin

This conversation with Frank Allen, former CEO of the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA), explores the Luas light rail project in Dublin and considers what can be learned from it. The RPA was established in 2001 to deliver the Luas and a separate tender process was established to select the operator. In 2015, The RPA was folded into Transport Infrastructure Ireland which now oversees major road and public transport projects. Frank has had a wide-ranging career beyond Luas, having first started out at the World Bank and KBC Bank. He served as Chairman of Depaul, Irish Rail and now Translink in Northern Ireland. He also advises on infrastructure finance and operations globally, especially in Europe and Asia. Matthew Wood joins us for our digest segment. Credits to RTE Archives for snippets in the intro montage.

Trailer: Memo to File

Memo to File releases weekly on Thursdays. Join us for conversations with the people who made Ireland better about doing good work, lessons learned and the institutional memory often lost over time.