The project at the Workplace Relations Commission was originally expected to cost around €200,000

Best that can be hoped for is that six to seven bays of the railings would be refurbished each year for five or six years

In an opening statement given to members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), on Tuesday, OPW officials argued that the cost was higher than forecast because of the emergency nature of the pilot programme.

Paschal Donohoe said while he was not involved in the decision and did not approve the spending, he ‘accepts responsibility’ as a finance minister

The latest figures show the OPW paid out €809,000 for security systems at the private residences of eleven individuals in the first six months of this year

The Office for Public Works has also come under recent scrutiny for spending €336,000 on a glass-covered bike shelter

The total bill for the covered shelter was €336,000.

A series of reports from the Office of Public Works (OPW) detail how the Áras was forced to call in exterminators on an almost monthly basis over the past year.