Health chiefs don't have IT spend figure

HEALTH chiefs last night sparked alarm by admitting they do not know how much is being spent on their computer system upgrades as the Government moves to pump billions more into the projects.

The Dáil's powerful Public Accounts Committee (PAC) heard the disturbing revelation as it began probing the €195 million PPARS payroll initiative fiasco.

Secretary general of the Department of Health Michael Scanlan indicated fragmentation in the health service before the creation of the Health Service Executive (HSE) made it difficult to track exactly how much was going into computer systems.