John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

On the question of bonuses, the Deputy has made valid points and I have always shared his view. As mentioned on the previous question, we lost the run of ourselves in terms of bonus payments during the Celtic tiger years. The Deputy's question is specific and I will have to come back to him on it. On the question on the role of the Department, where I see a gap is that often managers take decisions and are not accountable for those major financial decisions. The person who then has to take the rap and has to go before the PAC is the Secretary General of my Department. I have discussed this with other Deputies and it makes sense that in the context of reviewing local government structures, we look at the possibility that managers go before the PAC and account for the financial decisions they have made.

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