A former key executive from Ryanair told the HSE that the travel and expenses bill for staff was too expensive at €1,050 per staff member and should be drastically reduced.
Michael Cawley, who was appointed to the health service board last year, said a €91.3 million annual travel and subsistence bill was “too high” and that “much more control needed to be exercised by management.”
Mr Cawley, a former deputy CEO of Ryanair, said the use of online conference platforms like Team and Zoom could be used to reduce the spend significantly.
In an email to fellow board members and HSE senior management, he wrote: “Preauthorisation of all travel by [management] together with a prohibition on foreign travel should yield considerable savings.”
The discussions took place earlier this year as the health service looked to cut costs with several areas of spending targeted for savings.
One of them was travel and subsistence with one senior official saying savings could be made by “applying existing rules rather than new rules or limits.”
Maurice Dillon, the National Lead for Palliative Care, wrote: “My sense is that they may not be applied consistently across disciplines, regions and line managers.
“For instance, if [an] employee uses their own vehicle where public transport could have been used, the amount of mileage should not exceed the cost of public transport.”
Another member of the HSE’s senior management team Patrick Lynch said the rule around “public transport before cars” needed to be reinforced.
Mr Lynch, National Director for Planning and Performance, also recommended a reduction in the use of taxis or hotel venues for meetings unless they had prior authorisation.
He said there could be a reduction in foreign travel for conferences, and that a new process might be needed for “exceptional approvals.”