National debt - Simple errorbig mistake

NOT for the first time, a simple accounting error has left a big dollop of egg on the face of semi-state bodies.

Thankfully, as it turns out, the Government has a smile on its collective face because the error means the national debt is €3.6 billion less than expected.

The explanation for this fortuitous cock-up is that when the National Treasury Management Agency advanced the money to another agency, both debited the money, a basic accounting error. The end result of this bizarre scenario is embarrassment on all sides.