The Government's spending record has been strongly defended by Minister for Finance Brian Cowen, following Opposition charges that it is failing to get value for money.
Acknowledging that the Government's image has been damaged, he said: "We have built up expertise, whether it is in our roads area or in a range of other projects which are . . . within time, within budget. And yet it seems that a perception is out there that none of this is happening. It is happening and it is this Government's job to get out there and tell the public about the good things that are happening," he said, before he addressed the Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
He said spending controls imposed in the last Budget would "certainly make sure that the difficulties would come to the attention of Ministers far sooner" than before.
In his speech, Mr Cowen said he believed that getting value for taxpayers' money was "a core part of my job". However, he said: "Anyone who claims that they can eliminate every case of waste is talking nonsense. Is there a person or organisation, let alone a government, in the world who can honestly say that they have maximised the return from every spending or every investment decision?
"Of course not. But what you can do is to have systems for planning and evaluation which minimise the risk and maximise the chances of finding it when it occurs," he said.
