Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow and Chair of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), John Brady, has today launched the Committee’s latest report examining expenditure, governance and value for money within the International Protection and Temporary Protection systems.
Deputy Brady said the report exposes serious failures in the management of public funds, with the experience at River Lodge in Newtownmountkennedy providing a stark local example of the waste, poor planning, failure of engagement with local communities and lack of accountability that has characterised the system.
Speaking following the launch, Teachta Brady said:
“This report lays bare a chaotic system that is failing to deliver value for money.
“For people in Wicklow, the experience at River Lodge in Newtownmountkennedy is a particularly glaring example of this failure.
“River Lodge was pushed ahead as emergency international protection accommodation despite repeated concerns being raised by myself, local representatives and the wider community about the suitability of the site.
“This failure to engage with local communities was repeated across the State, with incredibly significant consequences.
“The decision to proceed at River Lodge was haphazard from the outset, and it has cost the local community and the taxpayer.
“More than €2.8 million was spent in 2024 across site establishment and maintenance, accommodation and services, security and fuel.
“The site ultimately ceased operating as emergency accommodation in December 2024 after adverse weather conditions rendered the tented structures unviable and all residents had to be relocated.
“Yet, despite the site being empty and unused, expenditure continued.
“More than €1.4 million was spent at River Lodge in 2025 alone, including an astonishing €1.3 million on security for a completely vacant site.
“That is an extraordinary waste of taxpayers’ money.
“River Lodge is not simply an isolated example of poor decision-making. It is symptomatic of the wider failures identified in this report.
“Across the State, IPAS expenditure reached approximately €1.06 billion in 2024, with €978 million paid to commercial accommodation providers. The highest-paid individual contractor received €45.55 million.
“In 2025, IPAS expenditure increased further to €1.22 billion.
“Expenditure on Ukrainian Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection amounted to €1.164 billion in 2024, including €861 million for commercial accommodation. The highest-paid provider received almost €54 million.
“The scale of public expenditure is staggering, and it has made millionaires out of a small number of commercial operators, while the State has repeatedly failed to secure proper value for money.
“Our examination also uncovered serious weaknesses in contract oversight, including discrepancies between contracted bed capacity and actual occupancy, resulting in recurring overpayments.
“Failures in procurement and financial controls also cost the State €13.5 million in EU funding, which had to be repaid in April 2026.
“There are also serious questions surrounding legal settlements with commercial providers, with five legal cases taken over pre-contract agreements. Three have been settled, while two remain before the courts. The Department has refused to disclose settlement costs, despite the C&AG identifying these liabilities as a material but undisclosed element of €35 million in accrued expenses.
“The River Lodge experience demonstrates precisely why the State needs to take a fundamentally different approach.
“We cannot continue to throw public money at unsuitable sites, poorly managed contracts and arrangements that provide little or no lasting value to the State or local communities.
“Rather than handing enormous sums of public money to private operators, we need to develop accommodation that remains a public asset and delivers a long-term return for taxpayers.
“In total, the Committee has made 13 recommendations aimed at addressing these failures, strengthening accountability, recovering historical overpayments, expanding State-owned accommodation and improving transparency around public expenditure.
“In Wicklow, the people of Newtownmountkennedy have already paid a heavy price for the mismanagement of River Lodge.
“The wider findings of this report make clear that the Government and the Department must now take responsibility for these failures and implement the recommendations without delay.
“River Lodge is a crystal clear example of how Government got their approach completely wrong, and why proper planning, financial controls and accountability are absolutely essential.”
ENDS