A number of key IT projects being undertaken by Government departments and State agencies are projected to run more than €61 million over budget, new figures submitted to a Dáil committee show.
A report by the Dáil Public Accounts Committee says the cost of the planned new next-generation contactless ticketing system, which will allow passengers to use their bank cards to travel on buses, trains and the Luas, was facing a cost overrun of €41 million.
The report indicates this project could now cost up to €269 million to deliver.
It is understood the figures in the report are being disputed and the committee is seeking clarification on this.
Sinn Féin TD John Brady, chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said the cost overrun on this project was “particularly alarming”.
The report also reveals that a €3.6 million case management system project for the Garda Ombudsman’s office was terminated following contractual issues.
It says the Department of Children’s affordable childcare scheme ICT project exceeded its original estimate by 49 per cent to reach a final cost of €10.6 million.
The report says a number of completed IT projects collectively overshot their budgets by about €11.5 million.
However, the report says overall spending was roughly in line with initial projections as underspending on some projects has offset overruns on others.
[ Why is it that IT projects do not come in on budget and on time?Opens in new window ]
The report found 34 projects had been completed with an overspend, while 33 ongoing projects were expected to result in an overspend.
“What has emerged is a deeply concerning pattern of consistent failings across Government – gaps in expertise, weak oversight structures, poor project management and wholly inadequate initial cost estimates,” said Brady.
“The findings show that major ICT projects are repeatedly running over time and over budget, with insufficient accountability mechanisms in place.”
Brady said this would be “an area of continuous monitoring” by the committee.