Wage bill sees HSE budget soar to €14bn

THE annual budget of the Health Service Executive (HSE) jumped by almost one third to €14.4 billion in the four years following its formation.

Figures compiled as part of an Irish Examiner special investigation also show in the first five years of its existence the HSE wage bill had risen from €4bn to €5.3bn, a 32% jump.

Another striking increases – this time of 75% – is seen in pension and lump sum payments which rose from €300 million in 2005 to €524m in 2009.