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 money 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]