The Government is to discuss the issue of hiring outside consultants at Cabinet tomorrow, amid divisions between Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats on the issue, writes Liam Reid
On Friday the Tánaiste and Minister for Health, Mary Harney, announced that the hiring of outside consultants in the Department of Health would from now on require ministerial consent.
It followed her comments in the Dáil that State agencies had been hiring too many consultants, and that their use should be the exception rather than the norm.
It is understood a number of Fianna Fáil ministers have concerns about introducing similar arrangements in their departments, believing the idea too unrealistic and leaving ministers open to accusations of favouritism.
It is now expected that ministers will discuss the current 1999 guidelines from the Department of Finance on the hiring of consultants, and whether they should be changed.
The move follows the controversy over the use of consultants costing more than €60 million in the controversial PPARs and FISP computer projects, the development of which was suspended by the Health Services Executive (HSE). It also emerged last week that the Government had spent at least €175 million since 1998 on consultancies.
Yesterday Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny called for a review of all information technology projects in the HSE.
A well-placed source said there was a belief among some ministers that if the current guidelines were followed within departments, "things like PPARs wouldn't happen".