«Breaking News» Varadkar questions timing of president´s office costs...

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has raised concerns over plans by an Oireachtas committee to examine the costs of the president’s office in the midst of an election campaign.

Mr Varadkar said the presidency and the president were above politics and he questioned the timing of a probe scrutinising presidential spending.

“I’m concerned by it,” Mr Varadkar said.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) decided on Thursday that it would examine the expenditure related to the Office of the President next week.

Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin and the country’s top civil servant, secretary general to the government Martin Fraser, have both voiced their worries over the expenses being analysed.

Mr Varadkar said: “We have a separation of powers in our Constitution. The Aras is not accountable to the Dail and the Dail is not accountable to the Aras.”

President Michael D Higgins is running for another seven-year term (Liam McBurney/PA)

The Taoiseach added: “We are heading into a presidential election in the next couple of weeks.

“Presidential terms last for seven years. The PAC has seven years to look at this matter and they’ll have seven years again to look at this matter if they so wish, perhaps the timing is not advisable.”

The majority of committee members agreed in a vote to hold a meeting looking into the costs incurred by the Office of the President.

The meeting is set to take place next Tuesday, a day before the Presidential election campaign officially kicks off.

PAC chairman Sean Fleming said that it was important that information about presidential spending be released before the election so that people could draw their own conclusions before they vote.

Mr Fleming added that if the examination did not go ahead, it could cause members of the public to cast aspersions on the expenditure, which could be damaging to the Office of the President.

Records relating to the presidency are exempt from Freedom of Information (FOI) laws.

So far six candidates are in the running for the highest office in the state.

President Michael D Higgins has launched a second bid for the office. He will have to fend off Sean Gallagher, Gavin Duffy and Sean Casey, all of whom are Dragons’ Den stars, senator and Pieta House founder Joan Freeman and Sinn Fein candidate Liadh Ni Riada to take hold of the office for a further seven years.

The closing date for nominations is Wednesday at 12 noon with the election set to take place on Friday, October 26.

Linkhienalouca.com

https://hienalouca.com/2018/09/21/varadkar-questions-timing-of-presidents-office-costs/
Main photo article Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has raised concerns over plans by an Oireachtas committee to examine the costs of the president’s office in the midst of an election campaign.
Mr Varadkar said the presidency and the president were above politics and he questioned the timing of a probe scrutinising p...

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Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.

Dianne Reeves Online news HienaLouca





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