Ministers ‘should reveal overspends’

Strict new rules to compel ministers to declare department overspends and outline how they plan to reign in excessive costs have been recommended by an Oireachtas committee following the health minister’s botched budget projections.

It was wrong to bank on “unrealistic” savings promised by Health Minister James Reilly last year in drug costs and reduced use of agency staff, the Public Accounts Committee’s (Pac) unpublished report says.

The report, obtained by the Irish Examiner, also says public hospitals should be subject to stricter auditing rules because the current oversight for billions of euro going into the voluntary health sector is weak and “remains too sketchy”.