Public Accounts Committee (Ireland)

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) (formally the Committee of Public Accounts) (Irish: An Coiste um Chuntais Phoiblí) is a standing committee of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish Parliament. It oversees government expenditures to ensure they are effective and honest. It is responsible for examining reports of Comptroller and Auditor General on Departmental expenditure and certain other accounts. It also considers the Comptroller and Auditor General's reports of economy, efficiency, effectiveness evaluation systems, procedures and practices. The PAC has a key role to play in ensuring accountability and transparency in the way Government agencies allocate, spend and manage their finances and in guaranteeing that the taxpayer receives value for every euro spent.[1] By the nature of its role as the public spending watchdog, the Committee of Public Accounts is one of the most powerful Oireachtas Committees.[2]

Overview

It is established under Standing Order 163 of Dáil Éireann which requires it to be set up as a standing committee after each general election. The committee is constituted to be impartially representative of the Dáil and consists of thirteen members. A member of the Government or a Minister of State can not be a member of the PAC. It is normally chaired by a member of the opposition.


Membership

As of March 2024, the members of the committee are as follows:[3]

Member Party Constituency
Vacant (chair)
Cormac Devlin Fianna Fáil Dún Laoghaire
Paul McAuliffe Fianna Fáil Dublin North-West
James O'Connor Fianna Fáil Cork East
Colm Burke Fine Gael Cork North-Central
Alan Dillon Fine Gael Mayo
Marc Ó Cathasaigh Green Party Waterford
Imelda Munster Sinn Féin Louth
John Brady Sinn Féin Wicklow
Alan Kelly Labour Party Tipperary
Catherine Murphy Social Democrats Kildare North
Verona Murphy Independent Wexford

Chairpersons of the Public Accounts Committee

It is customary for a member of the largest opposition party to chair the committee.

Year Chairperson Party
1999 Jim Mitchell[4] Fine Gael
2002-2005 Michael Noonan Fine Gael
2005-2011 Bernard Allen Fine Gael
2011–2016 John McGuinness Fianna Fáil
2016-2020 Seán Fleming Fianna Fáil
2020–2024 Brian Stanley Sinn Féin

See also

References

  1. ^ "Role of the Public Accounts Committee". Oireachtas.ie. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  2. ^ "Committee of Public Accounts". Oiteachtas website. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  3. ^ Oireachtas, Houses of the (31 January 2024). "Membership – Committee of Public Accounts – 33rd Dáil – Houses of the Oireachtas". www.oireachtas.ie. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  4. ^ "Jim Mitchell dies in Dublin home". 2 December 2002.