'Potential fraud risks being overlooked' in HSE payroll system

The audit found that the HSE does not incorporate a fraud risk assessment in its approach to fraud risk management while there is no 'risk and controls matrix' of the payroll process.

Unapproved salary rates could be paid to HSE staff over an “extended period of time”, while potential “irregularities” in the wider organisation may not be identified and acted upon, a new audit has found.

Released to the Irish Examiner under the Freedom of Information Act, an internal audit of fraud risk assurance within HSE payroll — which issued payments worth €8.5bn in 2023 — from last November warned of the risk of financial loss and reputational damage to the organisation arising from “potentially systemic” issues.