The Minister for Public Expenditure has said he will be "taking further action" in relation to the purchase of a €124,000 scanner by the National Gallery that remains unused.
Jack Chambers said it is "totally unsatisfactory" that the scanner has not been utilised in the eight years since it was purchased, adding "it shows a disregard" for value for public money.
The minister said he will take action in relation to "central management and oversight" of the matter.
"I've asked my officials to review the public financial procedures and the policy frameworks governing expenditure across government," he said on RTÉ's Drivetime.
He said reviewing the implementation, efficacy and application of public expenditure procedures is "crucial to ensure we have a better anchor on expenditure control in specific agencies".
Mr Chambers announced that he will review public financial procedures to ensure that government departments and State agencies follow value-for-money principles in all spending decisions.
He said there is huge frustration and anger among taxpayers with certain examples of public money being wasted.
The National Gallery has been unable to find a suitable room for the X-ray machine after it was purchased at a cost of €124,805.
In November 2017, the National Gallery purchased the X-ray system as part of the Digital Investigative Imaging Project.
The equipment was described as essential to the process of examining the gallery's paintings in a non-destructive way.
Since 2018, the National Gallery has worked with the Office of Public Works to find a location for the scanner, but has not found a suitable room to date.
The scanner requires lead lining in the room where it is located. This is wall panelling used for radiation shielding. This led to concerns about the load-bearing capacity of rooms at the gallery.
Unused scanner to see use this year, says O'Donovan
Minister for Arts Patrick O'Donovan said the scanner will be up and running later this year at the National Gallery.
The revelation about the unused scanner was contained in the National Gallery's annual report which was brought to a meeting of the Cabinet by Mr O'Donovan.
"The gallery received funding from the Department for the purposes of purchasing a piece of equipment that they said was necessary for the operation of the gallery, and so eight years later, it hasn't been used," Mr O'Donovan said.
He added: "In fact, the ionising radiation source which is needed to actually turn the machine on isn't even in the country. It's in United Kingdom."
A tender was issued in November 2018, but the only bid received was non-compliant. Mr O'Donovan also said there are now three organisations under the remit of his department which have come under the spotlight for their spending.
They include the National Gallery, the Arts Council and RTÉ.
"You can add RTÉ into the mix, and that issue still has not been resolved, not to the public’s satisfaction anyway.
"And so that's why I also, separately to the two examinations that I have conducted, with regards to the Arts Council, also looked at the wider situation with regards to my own department," he said.
Mr O'Donovan said he asked his department to work with the IPA to examine its internal structures.
'Completely unacceptable’
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said it is incomprehensible that the National Gallery purchased a scanner almost eight years ago without first working out where it was going to locate it.
Tánaiste Simon Harris said his reaction was one of absolute fury.
"It's completely unacceptable and people are right to be angry about it," Mr Martin said.
The Taoiseach added the spending must be fully examined by the Public Accounts Committee.
Mr Martin said: "It's very difficult to explain that why someone would embark upon purchase of a scanner that they didn't have a facility to locate it in.
"I think it falls on the gallery itself to explain what happened here."
Speaking on his way into the Cabinet meeting, Mr Harris said: "My reaction to this is the same as the reaction that every person will have right across this country - which is one of absolute fury."
"Government provides money to State agencies. They do very good work, but they're also accountable for the spend of that money," he added.
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Buck stops with Govt over scanner, says McDonald
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said while the Government can point the finger at the National Gallery over the scanner, the buck stops with them.
She called on the Government to give an explanation for the serial wastage of public money.
Ms McDonald said there is a Government culture that has an utter disregard for public money.
Meanwhile, Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said it was laughable that senior Government figures were acting as commentators on this matter and responsibility rested with them.
Labour's Duncan Smith called on the Department of Public Expenditure to take the lead to prevent the wasting of taxpayer's money.
Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín accused the Government of incinerating taxpayers' money on a daily basis on projects going way over budget with no one being held accountable.
He added that people are sick and tired of this.
"Columbus found the New World faster than the National Gallery found a room to fit this particular scanner in," he claimed.
The gallery is now looking at using the scanner as a "mobile unit on-site" and it could come into use later this year.
Earlier this month, the Government ordered an external review of governance and culture at The Arts Council following a finding by the Comptroller and Auditor General that €7 million was spent by the body on an unsuccessful IT system.
In a statement, the National Gallery said: "In November 2017, the Gallery purchased an X-ray system valued at €124,805, funded by the 'Cultural Digitisation Scheme'.
"Currently, some elements of the X-ray system are stored securely onsite, while the main component, the X-ray bulb is stored with the supplier.
"X-ray facilities are used by most major galleries and museums and are considered an important tool for collection research and care.
"The gallery has been working with the relevant experts and stakeholders to bring the system into operation and has identified a preferred solution."
