Aiming to improve government transparency, a young Fianna F\u00e1il TD has unveiled a tool allowing the public to search through \u20ac108 billion of state expenditure, warning that people \u201cdon\u2019t trust\u201d the Government to manage their money.<\/p>\n
Writing in a Substack article published earlier this week<\/a>, Galway East TD Albert Dolan said the project, called StateSpend.ie<\/a>, would help the State see more clearly where public funds are going and achieve \u201cstronger outcomes\u201d for taxpayers.<\/p>\n He added that the platform was necessary to address growing public concern, citing a recent poll showing that 65% of people lack faith in the Government\u2019s ability to manage state finances.<\/p>\n \u201cNearly two in three people do not trust the Government to manage the public finances,\u201d said Dolan.<\/p>\n \u201cThis poll is a serious warning but not a surprise. People don\u2019t trust the Government to spend their money well.\u201d<\/p>\n The Fianna F\u00e1il backbench TD noted that the government frequently lacks sufficient oversight regarding how financial outlay translates into actual results for the public.<\/p>\n \u201cI cannot fairly conclude from the available evidence that the State spends money badly,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n \u201cBut neither can Government demonstrate, consistently and systematically, that it spends it well.\u201d<\/p>\n Dolan explained that the updated database standardises thousands of publicly available purchase orders and payment reports from government departments, health bodies, and local councils into one searchable location.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we were really looking for was the transaction layer beneath the headline totals, as close as we could get publicly to the underlying ledger,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n The Public Accounts Committee member added that while the platform provides visibility into government purchases, there is still a gap in connecting payments to the original tenders and ultimate outcomes.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can see who spent money, who received it, how much was reported and broadly what it was for,\u201d Dolan remarked.<\/p>\n \u201cBut we cannot connect that payment to the tender and contract behind it, see how the contract changed, or establish what was ultimately delivered.\u201d<\/p>\n He proposed the creation of a Public Spending Ledger to establish a chain connecting every stage of public procurement expenditure, from tender to final payment.<\/p>\n \u201cThe next objective is therefore to create a Golden Thread running through each stage of public procurement expenditure,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce this chain exists, expenditure can then be connected to delivery, performance and ultimately outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n Dolan argued that improved data collection is necessary for the government to accurately compare costs and leverage its massive buying capabilities.<\/p>\n \u201cThe point of spending transparency is not simply to know what we bought,\u201d he claimed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is to give the State the information it needs to buy better next time.\u201d<\/p>\n Dolan first introduced the platform in November 2024, at which point it tracked roughly \u20ac25 billion in state disbursements.<\/p>\n When the project officially debuted in October 2025, that figure had expanded to consolidate more than \u20ac78.5 billion in public spending data, pulling purchase order records of transactions over \u20ac20,000 from more than 190 State entities.<\/p>\n Speaking to Gript at the time of the first full launch last year, the politician said the tool was created to help people understand the public finances.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat our data set allows people to do is they can use this themselves,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt democratises the understanding of the public finances so that the person at home today can understand how money is being spent, where it\u2019s going and what they can anticipate.\u201d<\/p>\n Dolan, who comes from an accounting background, noted last year that government transparency should not be viewed as a negative thing by politicians.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not concerned with it and I don\u2019t think government sees that as a headache,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cGovernment ultimately wants to be efficient, wants to move at speed and wants to see projects delivered.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Aiming to improve government transparency, a young Fianna F\u00e1il TD has unveiled a tool allowing the public 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