{
  "id": 44188,
  "title": "Gardaí failed to provide auditors with overtime records",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/02/gardai-failed-to-provide-auditors-with-overtime-records",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-02T12:10:07.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "RTE News",
    "slug": "rte-news",
    "url": "https://www.rte.ie/news/2026/0802/1586186-garda-overtime/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) found that An Garda Síochána, the Irish police force, did not provide auditors with necessary overtime approval records. In a review of a €201 million annual overtime bill, auditors found that supporting paperwork was missing in 45 out of 67 cases. The C&AG discovered instances where officers were paid for exceeding their authorized overtime hours, with some cases involving over 50 hours without proper senior officer approval. Ten payments remained unexamined due to An Garda Síochána's failure to arrange required meetings with auditors. The audit concluded that the current system posed risks of errors, overpayments, or misuse of public funds, and that there was no comprehensive overtime policy in place. The C&AG highlighted multiple cases where sergeants signed off overtime for others, and instances where inspectors cleared paperwork for colleagues of the same rank. Notably, the C&AG attempted to access the garda roster and duty management system for overtime monitoring, but was denied due to the system's limitations and lack of staff training. The force acknowledged the need for policy and procedure review to ensure accurate and consistent application across the organization. While a garda response noted ongoing consultation, it did not indicate when new policies would be implemented.",
  "summary": "An Garda Síochána failed to provide auditors with approval records for overtime payments despite repeated requests for the documents.",
  "key_points": [
    "Gardaí omitted overtime approval records for auditors",
    "€201 million annual overtime bill had missing paperwork in 45 cases",
    "Over 50 hours of overtime paid without senior approval in some instances"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}