Public Accounts Committee to examine ‘profiteering' on asylum seeker accommodation, new chairman says
The
Dáil
's spending watchdog is to scrutinise expenditure on accommodation for
asylum seekers
, the new
national children's hospital
and on the failed IT system for the
Arts Council
, its new chairman has indicated.
Speaking at the first session of the new Dáil
Public Accounts Committee
on Thursday,
John Brady
of
Sinn Féin
said its focus must be on ensuring citizens received the very best services and the best value possible for public money.
He said one of the most pressing issues he intended to prioritise on the committee was 'massive profiteering' in the provision of accommodation for those seeking asylum in Ireland.
'People have become millionaires providing sometimes poor quality accommodation in a deeply flawed system while communities have lost vital local facilities including hotels,' said Mr Brady.
READ MORE
'The State has paid out billions of euro with, what I believe, is very little transparency. There are increasing reports of some companies with no track record being awarded substantial contracts.'
Mr Brady said the cost of the
International Protection Accommodation Service
last year was €1 billion and was projected to exceed €1.2 billion this year.
'I believe the Public Accounts Committee has a critical role in scrutinising how these contracts are awarded and whether they deliver value for money for the taxpayer.'
Mr Brady also said it was critically important that the committee examined costs associated with the new national children's hospital. He said expenditure had on the project had soared to more than €2.4 billion.
John Brady has indicated the Public Accounts Committee will examine costs associated with the national children's hospital. Photograph Nick Bradshaw
He said that previously the committee had experienced challenges in getting some critical bodies to appear before the Public Accounts Committee.
'There was deep frustration and disappointment on behalf of members of the last Public Accounts Committee when key witnesses from the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and Children's Health Ireland were unavailable to come before the committee,' he said.
[
Delay to opening of national children's hospital for patients known for some time, Carroll-MacNeill says
Opens in new window
]
'I would like to move quickly to invite those bodies into the Public Accounts Committee to get some very important questions answered.'
Mr Brady also said the Public Accounts Committee must look closely at spending by the Arts Council, particularly expenditure of €6.7 million on a failed IT system.
'Such a significant outlay with no outcome cannot go unchecked,' he said.
Mr Brady also said the committee should give particular scrutiny to 'the extremely serious issue of bogus self-employment'.
'This is a systemic problem in many sectors, not just in the likes of RTÉ or the gig economy. It is now a big issue for postmasters, to name but one other key area,' he said.
'It not only undermines workers' rights but places an unjust financial burden on the State. I believe the Public Accounts Committee has a duty to expose how and why these practices continue and to assess their real cost to the public purse.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
AG says he cannot help on legal query over Shannon flights that may aid Israel's Gaza war
Attorney General Rossa Fanning has told the Social Democrats that he is not in a position to assist after the party appealed to him to check whether Irish policy on flight inspection at Shannon Airport is consistent with EU customs law. The party's foreign affairs spokeswoman Patricia Stephenson had previously called on the EU anti-fraud watchdog, OLAF, to launch an investigation into the inspection of flights into Shannon which she said may be facilitating Israel's bombardment of Gaza . She also wrote to the Attorney General, along with her party colleague Gary Gannon, asking whether Irish policy is consistent with the State's legal duties under both EU law and the Genocide Convention. In a response, Mr Fanning wrote that while he appreciated the party had written to him 'with the public-spirited concern of conscientious members of the Oireachtas', he was unable to assist as his constitutional role 'does not extend to providing analysis of legal matters to individual members of the Oireachtas'. READ MORE He said that furthermore, 'it would be neither appropriate, nor in accordance with my legal position, for me to act as a conduit in bringing such concerns to the attention of the Government'. [ Ireland seeks 'legal clarity' over Shannon stopover for US deportation flights Opens in new window ] 'As members of the Oireachtas, I trust you will have the opportunity to express to Government directly the concerns you raise in the correspondence to DG TAXUD [Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union] and OLAF.' The Social Democrats have said there is credible evidence that military contractors and private aircraft carrying dual-use goods are moving through Irish airspace and Irish territory en route to Israel. Ms Stephenson has previously said that under EU customs law, Ireland is required to carry out risk-based inspections. 'That means prioritising flights operated by arms brokers or those on known weapons trade routes. That's what the law says - and right now, Ireland isn't following it,' she said. [ New aircraft inspection system planned to prevent illegal transport of weapons through Ireland Opens in new window ] Speaking on Friday after receiving the AG's letter, Ms Stephenson said: 'Given the response of the Attorney-General, it's now important that the Taoiseach clarifies if the Irish State is indeed in breach of EU law in choosing not to inspect planes that are arriving in Shannon and then travelling out of the European Union directly from Ireland. 'Obviously our concern is one of moral failure, regarding Gaza and the weapons travelling through Ireland, but the State can't continue to operate outside of EU Customs and VAT requirements while maintaining this appalling indifference to what is happening in Shannon Airport.'
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on caring for older people: deserving of dignity, gratitude and respect
Much is rightly made of the statements of intent and idealism that characterised the foundation documents of this Republic. These included the Democratic Programme unveiled at the meeting of the first Dáil in January 1919, in which 'The Irish Republic fully realises the necessity of abolishing the present odious, degrading and foreign Poor Law System, substituting therefor a sympathetic native scheme for the care of the Nation's aged and infirm, who shall not be regarded as a burden, but rather entitled to the Nation's gratitude and consideration'. At the centre of that poor law system established under British rule was the workhouse, which was feared and detested in equal measure. While independent Irish governments subsequently sought to develop a more humane and empathetic social contract, the care of our elderly population has for far too long been compromised, sometimes egregiously. There is excessive reliance on nursing homes, a dependency more alarming given the shortcomings in Ireland's history of institutional care. There has also been a dramatic shift towards the privatisation of these homes. In the 1980s, public nursing homes accounted for roughly 60 per cent of total beds nationally, but a report from the ESRI last year highlighted that in 2022, '83 per cent of all Long-Term Residential Care (LTRC) home beds were provided by voluntary/private sector LTRC homes, with private for-profit operators alone contributing 74 per cent'. Considering the recent revelations by RTÉ Investigates, the Minister of State for Older People and Housing, Kieran O'Donnell, has said he has 'concerns' about the scale of privatisation and has ordered officials to study this issue . The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has highlighted the need to give it more power in relation to private nursing homes and their corporate owners. READ MORE The current controversies are all the more disturbing given it is 20 years since distressing images of the use of Buxton chairs to restrain elderly nursing home residents at the Leas Cross home in Dublin. A subsequent report by consultant geriatrician Desmond O'Neill described the care shortcomings at the home as 'institutional abuse'. As was often and remains the case, various concerns had been raised but it took journalistic exposé to bring matters to a head. In 2022, our population aged 65 years and over was 781,400 and is set to reach over one million by 2030. The number aged over 85 is projected to rise to 301,000 by 2051. What has been uncovered must generate an urgent dynamic to address the care of our elderly, who now, no more than when their needs were voiced by the architects of Irish independence, need to be treated with the dignity, gratitude and respect they deserve.
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Delays to housing plan could push it back to September
The Government is discussing a delay to publishing its new housing plan until after the summer. The plan, which is to replace the last coalition's Housing for All approach, was due to be published during July, but it looks as though it could slip into September before it is made publicly available. Senior Government figures said the new plan could not be completed until the publication of a review of how the State is going to fund its multi-year infrastructure delivery programme, which is now expected in late July. That review – of the National Development Plan (NDP) – is expected to add many billions in allocations for roads, public transport, the electricity grid and water infrastructure, among other things. But it needs to be completed before Minister for Housing James Browne publishes the coalition's roadmap for how it will hit its housing targets. READ MORE The potential to push back publication of the housing plan until September is said to have been discussed at a meeting of the Cabinet housing subcommittee. [ No 'special exemptions' for students under latest Rent Pressure Zone system, James Browne says Opens in new window ] While some Government sources believe there is concern about pushing back its publication, others say a delay would have support around the Cabinet table. A final decision on what to do regarding the publication date will have to be made in the coming weeks. It is unlikely that the plan can be unveiled in August, when much of the political system shuts down for the summer break, many civil servants are on leave, and the Dáil is not sitting. A spokeswoman for Mr Browne would not be drawn on a specific date for publication of the report, beyond saying it would be as soon as possible after the publication of the NDP review, which in turn will cover all public capital investment to 2035 and allocate funds from the Apple tax case and AIB share sales, among other sources of capital. Mr Browne's spokeswoman said work on the plan is 'at an advanced stage'. [ The Government is finally showing some political courage in tackling the housing crisis Opens in new window ] 'The next housing plan is due to be published after the publication of the National Development Plan as a matter of priority,' she said. 'This sequencing is necessary, as the housing plan must have certainty around the investment plans and capital programmes for the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage before the next plan can be finalised and published.' She said Mr Browne was not waiting for publication of the new plan before pushing forward with measures, including on Rent Pressure Zones reform, planning extensions and exemptions. The previous government also encountered delays when it was seeking to bring forward Housing for All under the former minister for housing, Darragh O'Brien. That document was due to be launched in July 2021, but was ultimately pushed back to September of that year, which drew criticism from the opposition.
