‘A new Ireland’ but it’s the same old story

Anyone tuning into yesterday’s meeting of the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee would be forgiven for wondering if we have learnt anything from all that has happened in recent years.

Board members of an important provider of disability services defending the awarding of lucrative salaries (paid with donations given by the small people of Ireland) on the basis that the beneficiaries were worth it.

Then hiding behind legal “obligations” to insist there was no way of changing the payments, and shrugging their shoulders at suggestions that it might be deemed to be morally wrong.