Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 27 November 2025
535. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to detail all mechanisms in place within her Department to verify the financial transparency and operational compliance of non-statutory bodies receiving public funds; and if she will provide a summary of the most recent compliance checks or reviews undertaken. [66984/25]
View answer553. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to set out the audits, inspections or compliance checks carried out by her Department in the past three years relating to non-statutory bodies that receive public health funding directly from her Department, including the date of each review, the body reviewed, the methodology used, and the findings. [67013/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 535 and 553 together.
The vast majority of payments made by my Department are to statutory bodies. Payments to non-statutory bodies represent less than 0.01% of the Department’s overall spend.
All payments made to non-statutory bodies are to the same two bodies (as specified in my previous response to PQ 66983/25) and to the Department commissioned, Patients Advisory Services each year. These bodies represent and advocate for patients, accrediting professional medical qualifications, conducting health surveys, promoting healthy living and highlighting areas for further improvement in the life expectancy of disadvantage groups, mostly on an all-Ireland basis arising from the Good Friday Agreement or other international agreements.
Department officials are in regular communication with these bodies over both their role in the health system and the nature of their spend. If there was a decision to make a health-related payment to a new non-statutory body, due diligence would naturally apply to any funding being considered, including background checks on the organisation concerned, including obtaining copies of audited financial statements.
Broadly similar procedures apply to all payments made by the Department to ensure that all payments are:
• genuine,
• subject to the principle of approval within a proper segregation of duties environment,
• for an appropriate purpose improving the overall health and well-being of our citizens, and
• tax compliant,
• within the parameters of public financial procedures.
All payments made are recorded in the Department’s Financial Management System and, as with any payments made by the Department, are subject to review by the Internal Audit Unit and the Comptroller and Auditor General. To date no significant control issues in respect of these bodies have been identified in the course of audit.
