FG claim ‘lack of financial expertise’

JUST eight accountants oversee Government spending totalling €29 billion, Fine Gael has claimed.

Despite having a budget of some €16bn per year via the HSE, the Health Department can only boast one qualified accountant — yet the much smaller Environment Department contains 47.

Fine Gael senator Pascal Donohoe expressed alarm at what he called the lack of financial expertise at major spending wings of Government like health, social and family affairs and education.