Dail motion of 'concern' at State spending

Fine Gael and Labour are to combine this week in a Dáil bid to embarrass the Government over State spending problems revealed last month by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG).

The report by C&AG John Purcell showed that serious tax fraud was now rampant in the construction industry, partly because the Revenue Commissioners were overworked.

The C&AG report also showed that National Toll Roads kept €2 million more from tolls on the Westlink M50 bridge than it should have under its deal with the State.

Speaking last night, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said major problems with the Department of Health's computer payroll system would be "the next time bomb" to hit the Government.

"There is a ticking time bomb on the Tánaiste's desk," he told TV3's The Political Party.

"This was estimated by the Department of Health in 1998 to cost €8 million and to roll out over three years.

"Seven years on, it's not finished, and has cost €120 million. The C&AG estimated in his report of August 2005 that it may cost another €100 million."

The combined Dáil motion expresses "concern" at the C&AG's findings, deplores "the incompetence and mismanagement highlighted in the report" and demands efforts "to end waste".

Labour Dublin West TD Joan Burton said the findings "were so damning" they required a Dáil debate, though that would not happen unless the Opposition used its share of time.

"The report's findings, when taken with earlier incidences of waste, such as the electronic voting fiasco and the massive overrun on the roads' programme, confirm that this Government is probably the most wasteful administration in the history of the State.

"The Government must now be forced to bring forward proposals to improve the system of public expenditure decision-making, to get better value for taxpayers' money and to tackle the ongoing waste of public money."

Fine Gael Dublin North Central TD Richard Bruton said the hopes of better living standards were being "undermined" by the inability of the Government to deliver quality public services while achieving value for money.

"The litany of waste seems to expand every week, with Government Ministers taking an astonishingly cavalier attitude with taxpayers' money.

"If this is to end, we must have reform of administrative processes and financial procedures to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of future spending."