Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I think that is quite amazing, unfortunately, especially considering we have spoken about the lessons we expect to learn from the recommendations of the PwC report regarding the national children's hospital. The Minister is, essentially, stating he has no role regarding evaluation or due diligence, apart from the Vote provided funding in a given year. The Minister has stated, however, that his role crystallises when spending costs get out of control. I refer back to the Minister's answer. It is similar to an answer he gave me in response to a parliamentary question earlier this month: "The Office of Government Procurement was represented in an advisory role on the procurement board for this project". The primary aim of the board is to review independently, as the Minister rightly states, the Department's oversight of the evaluation stages of procurement. No decision-making responsibility, however, lies with the Minister's Department.

That brings us back to the Office of Government Procurement. The Minister's Department has a representative on that, as it had in regard to the same office and its role regarding the national children's hospital project. The spending there went out of control to the extent that it was six times the original spending that the Government estimated would be needed to deliver the project. Was the Minister not informed? What oversight role does the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform really have? What prudence can it engender in other Departments? We do not seem to have learned lessons from the recommendations of the PwC report because the Office of Government Procurement, with a representative from the Minister's Department, is again not informing a line Minister.

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