Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

This is not the type of job which the HSE has the necessary expertise to do.

Consideration was given by the HSE to the involvement of public sector staff to assist the executive in administering the scheme, but the HSE has indicated that this approach was not taken due to a number of factors. These included potential industrial relations difficulties, the requirement to assign dedicated HSE resources to supervise these staff and remove them from normal duties, the time constraints of the public procurement process and the potential for significant logistical difficulties and protracted delays which would have to be factored into the tendering process if the staff were to be taken on board.

This is the largest repayment scheme ever undertaken in the State. The State has been found by the Supreme Court to have been wrong——

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