The inspection was concerned with the €9.4m acquisition of 465 ventilators from China during the initial phase of the pandemic

Spelling errors, Chinese labelling, and a lack of legal declarations of conformity were among the issues noted with ventilators procured from China, investigators found

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) scrutinised the deal which saw the HSE pay €14.1m to import ventilators from China

Cost of unused machines due to 'quality-related issues' to was €9.4m, or €20,235 per unit

A confidential position paper seen by the ‘Irish Examiner’ reveals the background to the aborted €35m deal to buy ventilators from China via a media company, and the risks identified by the HSE, writes Cianan Brennan