Committee of Public Accounts to examine 2020 Appropriation Account and reports related to Irish Coast Guard with Department of Transport

The meeting in Committee Room 3 of Leinster House will be joined by the C&AG, Seamus McCarthy, and will be split into two sessions.

The morning session, from 9.30am-12.30pm, will be with officials from the Department of Transport and the Coast Guard, led by the Secretary General, Ken Spratt, and will examine:

• Appropriation Account 2020 (Vote 31 Transport);
• Accounts of the Public Services 2020 - Chapter 5: Expenditure on the night vision imaging technology and training for Search and Rescue;
• C&AG Special report 113 - Procurement of Vehicles by the Irish Coast Guard;
• The Motor Tax Account is also on the agenda and other areas of interest to the Committee include expenditure on Metrolink, DART, BusConnects, and the All Ireland Strategic Rail Review.

During the afternoon session, from 1.30pm-4.30pm, the Committee will consider the Minutes of its meeting of 4 November 2021, Accounts and Statements, Correspondence, its Work Programme and any other business.

Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Brian Stanley said: “The Department of Transport has responsibility for land, sea and air transport policy and for overseeing transport services and infrastructure. It had expenditure of €2.7 billion in 2020. Areas of that expenditure that the Committee wishes to explore include Public Service Obligation (PSO) payments for public transport and regional air routes, road improvements and maintenance, and supports for regional airports. We would also like to discuss the Motor Tax Account, which saw €938 million in motor tax receipts collected during 2020 – a reduction of €25m compared to 2019.

“The Committee also wishes to examine spending by the Irish Coast Guard on two significant procurement projects: the development of night vision capability for the search and rescue helicopters, and the purchase and fitting out of 18 specialist cliff rescue vehicles at a total cost of €1.4m. In relation to night vision capability, since 2013 some €6.5m has been spent equipping the five search and rescue helicopters with night vision and training the crews to use the equipment, yet only one helicopter base was approved for night vision operations by June 2021.

“Members would also like to hear updates on spending to date on the major public transport projects planned for the Dublin area, including Metrolink, DART and Bus Connects, particularly in light of the publication this week of the updated transport strategy which may not see some of these schemes carrying passengers before the middle of the next decade. The Committee looks forward to examining these issues and related matters with Mr Spratt and his colleagues.”

The meeting in Committee Room 3 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

PAC is a standing committee of Dáil Éireann which focuses on ensuring public services are run efficiently and achieve value for money.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.