Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 13 October 2020

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

Committee Work Programme: Discussion (Resumed)

Photo of Eoin Ó BroinEoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is an even broader issue than that. The Accounting Officers in local authorities are not accountable to anybody beyond themselves, whereas every departmental Accounting Officer, who is also the Secretary General, is brought before the Committee of Public Accounts. That is not the case with local government. There have been two debates up until this point. One is that the Committee Public Accounts, or a subcommittee of it, be given that role and the other is that NOAC be strengthened and given that role. This is a good discussion. Can I suggest that we do not confine it just to expenses? This is about the public accountability of the overall spend. This is quite a big issue. There is no Oireachtas or independent oversight bar the Comptroller and Auditor General Comptroller who periodically does reports. There is nowhere that those reports can go where questions can then be asked. This is probably more to do about the financial accountability of local authorities, which would include the expenses.

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