Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The point the Chairman is making is very relevant because the issue of procurement and compliance is really the bane of our lives at the Committee of Public Accounts. While I am a relatively new member of the committee, I am aware that it continually raises its head. It is an issue of how public money is spent and that is the main requirement. Public officials should be held to account if they are in breach of the code of practice or the rules of compliance. In the case of the 1930 legislation, they are now compulsorily bound in respect of compensation. There is €9 million from the HSE in silent compensation alone, not to mention the individual amounts paid by hospitals and so on. That issue of no sanction arises again and again. On the other side of the equation is the impact on suppliers. They are the lifeblood of the economy and if they are not paid, how will they remain in existence? There is a double whammy: the fact that public money is being misspent and that there is an adverse effect on the economy. It is something we have to get to grips with and have some direct mechanism for stamping it out. The sooner we get that report on procurement and develop an overall policy that has teeth in terms of sanctions, the better. I am aware one was circulated but also require one on compliance in the context of what the Chairman mentioned earlier. Otherwise, this will keep coming up and we will keep addressing it and be frustrated. There must be something of a showdown at this committee-----