Michael Lowry (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

On the same subject, whatever about the reality, the perception among working people means that they are questioning the misuse of public moneys. I want to ask a question regarding PwC, which has been engaged by the Government to explain this gross miscalculation. I am curious to understand what procurement procedure was followed to appoint this firm. One could argue that a conflict of interest exists because PwC received in excess of €30 million over the past nine years in fees from BAM. We now have a situation where PwC is conducting an analysis and assessment of the reasons we have this gigantic overrun. BAM will most certainly play a central role in that examination. Can the Taoiseach explain why the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General was not utilised as the watchdog to carry out this function, particularly in view of the fact that its statutory remit is to improve the use of public moneys and resources and strengthen public accountability? Is it the case that the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General is not adequately staffed to provide this resource? Why are we farming out so much of our public service work to a small, select group of accountancy and legal firms. Is it accurate to contend that the public service no longer has the talent or the expertise to conduct such onerous exercises?

At a time when, generally, many Irish households struggle with everyday costs such as those relating to childcare, mortgages, rent and insurance, there is a strongly held sentiment that public moneys are being squandered due to unnecessary layers of bureaucracy. Growing numbers of quangos - yes, the quangos are most definitely back - and committees of review are established yet no one is held responsible for costly decisions. In 2011, Fine Gael and Labour separately promised to abolish or merge many dozens of what they described as wasteful agencies. Fine Gael listed 145 quangos which would be terminated when it came to power. While a total of 62 were terminated, as many as 40 new agencies have been created. Some 14 of those involved mergers of old agencies. There are now, at enormous cost to the taxpayer, an estimated 257 quangos. It is ironic that their existence creates further distance between the public and the relevant Minister or Department when policy issues, controversies or the need to apportion blame arise. The quango culture is alive and thriving at a growing cost to the Irish taxpayer while, at the same time, diminishing even more the responsibility of the Minister or the Department involved.

The cost of the administering the State, together with so much unaccountable allocation of public moneys, is infuriating for a hard-pressed workforce. What measures can the Taoiseach and the Government take to rein in the cost of public administration?

See this speech in context