VECs face hands-on system of scrutiny

The Department of Education has revealed it is to tackle waste and mismanagement in the VEC sector by unveiling a new system of scrutiny.

When it is rolled out it will fill the gap in the “level of assurance provided to the department regarding financial arrangements at VECs”.

Under the plan, the department will take a more hands-on role in directing the work of auditors to examine risky and one-off expenditure in the €1.16bn sector. It will restrict the financial freedom of chiefs executive at VECs by expanding the types of transactions that require specific departmental approval.