Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 12 July 2023
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach
Changes to Public Spending Code: Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform
Mr. John Conlan:
The 2019 reforms were the key response to the report the Deputy referenced on the national children's hospital. They have been in place since 2019. The emphasis is on bringing in the expertise of the major project advisory group at a very early stage in the process to challenge a project. That was not in place prior to 2019. This is the key reform in the evolution of the code in recent years. It is with regard to major projects. The recent reforms would not have made a big difference. The important point, with regard to big projects which are highly complex with high-value involving many inputs, is with regard to the reforms made in 2019. This is why we require the expertise of the major project advisory group to challenge a project at an early stage.