Bailiffs to chase Leinster House bar tabs

Private debt collectors are to be employed on an “ongoing basis” to chase up unpaid Dáil bar tabs running into tens of thousands of euro.

The decision has been taken by the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, which runs Leinster House, after it was found that a small number of TDs and senators are consistently breaching credit limits.

The committee — which includes Ceann Comhairle Seán Barrett and Paddy Burke, Cathaoirleach of the Seanad — had requested a “progress report” on unpaid debts from the Oireachtas catering service.