John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is an awful reflection on the State that it allowed such a situation to arise and did not address it. I am asking that the matter be addressed in terms of policy and that we look at how the €370,000 provision is spent. I would like to know what the breakdown of that figure is and the policy direction the Department will take to ensure we get value for money for taxpayers. We must address the situation of those persons who were benefiting from the scheme but, for some reason, were later taken off it. They were examined by the medical board and told they were disabled for life and therefore eligible for the scheme. Subsequently, for some reason, they are told they should not have that benefit and it was taken from them. As a consequence, they had to pay back part of the tax incentive from which they benefited. The second issue is that if they want to appeal that decision, they cannot appeal to Revenue but must go back to the medical board. There is no flexibility from the board and it does not give any reason as to why a person was considered eligible in the first case but then, after a number of years, found to be not eligible. I do not know how a person can have a disability for life three years ago and subsequently be told that, actually, he or she does not have such a disability. Someone is wrong in such cases and the person central to it is deprived of any means of appeal. I ask the Minister of State to examine the unfairness in the system and give it the attention that is needed.

The second question I want to ask relates to the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, which is responsible for examining 291 different sets of accounts. In the context of this Estimate, can the Minister of State confirm that all of the requirements set out by the office are funded? In other words, does the Comptroller and Auditor General have the full complement of staff he has indicated he requires? Has he full access to the IT, consultancy and professional inputs he needs, or are we leaving him short-changed in terms of the work we are asking him and his office to do?