How the Government uses the Framework

There has been considerable work undertaken, with further work underway, in the well­-being space in Ireland. Over time this portal will bring together key outputs, creating a one-stop­ shop for those interested in exploring Well-being work being conducted across Government.

Budget Process

The Well-being Framework features at key points in the Budget process annually. This supplements existing work to provide an additional holistic understanding of quality of life issues into the discussions and publications which surround Budget decision-making. For Budget 2024 this included:

• National Economic Dialogue
• Summer Economic Statement
• Budget 2024: Beyond GDP - Quality of Life
• Budget 2024 - Enhancing the Well-being of People Living in Ireland
• Budget 2024 – Revised Estimates Volume 2024 – Enhancing the Well-being of People Living in Ireland Working Paper No.5l

Well-being Research

• The Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation has published a working paper examining the relationship between well-being and public policy. As part of this process, the Department has published a working paper, Lives of Older People in Ireland, that uses a broad range of conceptualisations of ageing and the Well-being Framework to develop an understanding of what is meant by well-being in older age in Ireland.
• The Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation has published a working paperoutlining how a well-being perspective can be developed within the context of the budgetary process, and, in particular, support the development of a cross-governmental description of resource allocation decisions as a complement to the existing approach to presenting such information.

For Budget 2025 the Department has published a paper on Enhancing the Well-being of People Living in Ireland Working Paper No.6.

For Budget 2024, the Department published two papers:

1. Budget 2024 – Enhancing the Well-being of People Living in Ireland which provides a cross-governmental look at selected measures announced in Budget 2024, and;

2. Budget 2024 – Revised Estimates Volume 2024 – Enhancing the Well-being of People Living in Ireland Working Paper No.5l which provides a high-level, cross-governmental description of the total allocation of resources as presented in the Revised Estimates Volume for Public Services 2024.

These papers will help discussions on how a well-being perspective might impact and inform the allocation of resources.

• The Department of Finance has published three research papers on well-being frameworks:

Wellbeing and the Measurement of Broader Living Standards in Ireland

Sustainability in the Irish Well-being Framework: A Review

Economic Insights Volume 1 2025

• The National Economic and Social Council continues to develop a body of work on well-being framework , including how well-being frameworks are embedded in policy making internationally.

Related National Initiatives

Nationally there are examples, across departments and agencies of well-being related initiatives, which link into and complement various elements of the national Well-being Framework.

These include:

• A new Health System Performance Assessment (HPSA) Platform, an overarching framework of health performance indicators;
• Better Outcomes, Brighter Future (work is commencing on a successor Strategy), an overarching national policy framework for children and young people (aged 0-24 years) to coordinate policy across Government to achieve better outcomes for those of that age; and
• Our Environment, Our Health, Our Wellbeing: Access to Blue/Green Spaces in Ireland
• Department of Transport spending review - Adopting a Well-being Approach to Assessing Climate Action in The Transport Sector. This spending review examines the application of the Well-being Framework in the specific context of examining climate policy in the transport sector.

Complementary National Initiatives

While having different purposes, the Well-being Framework and dashboard of indicators is complementary to Ireland's work on the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). To highlight this complementarity, the Government’s Second Report - A Well-being Framework for Ireland on the development of the Well-being Framework included a mapping exercise of the two initiatives.