Menu
In my 20 years in business, as a camogie club treasurer and in other volunteering roles I have had responsibility for other people’s money. I treat that money as though it was my own – in fact, I’m probably even more careful with it than I would be with my own money.
How this is not the status quo thought process in the Irish public service boggles my mind. Projects intended to cost X end up costing 4X and get delivered way too late. This is a seemingly never-ending cycle in Irish infrastructure projects and it needs to be tackled. If projects can be delivered on-time and in-budget in other countries then why not here?
The suppliers have a responsibility in the equation too – by exploiting loopholes in contracts, they are not taking from “the government”, they are taking from the taxpayer and they too need to be held to account.
Firstly I’d place more emphasis on risk assessment and anticipating challenges. In the example of the modular homes fiasco, it has to be anticipated that acquiring land, logistical delays and contractor issues (in an inflationary environment) are potential problems. So these need to be considered when budgeting for projects with contingency plans in place for real-world problems.
