Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 April 2026
289. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department requires independent external audit or evaluation of service delivery outcomes for non-statutory bodies it funds; if not, how the Department assures itself that reported outcomes are accurate and reliable; and if she will outline any plans to introduce independent validation mechanisms. [27826/26]
View answerThe All Island Institute of Public Health (IPH) is the only non-statutory body that receives funding directly by the Department. This is due to its specific nature as an all island body that was set up prior to the signing of the Good Friday / Belfast Agreement in 1998. The IPH provides support on public health policy to the respective Departments of Health and Chief Medical Officers in both jurisdictions.
The IPH regularly produces high quality input into the Department of Health, and has done so since its inception in 1998. The IPH does not provide services that require reported outcomes and monitoring in the manner necessary for service related organisations. Validation of the outputs of the IPH is in the physical provision of reports, events, policy briefs, consultation responses, journal articles and conferences that are produced. These are all self-evident and verifiable and do not require independent validation mechanisms.
