The Commission of Investigation into the handling of complaints against convicted Waterford child abuser Bill Kenneally has cost €4.2 million to date.
That's according to figures obtained by the Irish Daily Mail in a report on the cost of various State inquiries.
The Hickson Commission was tasked with investigating the extent to which several State bodies were aware of Kenneally's activities and whether or not they took appropriate action.
In the six years since its establishment, it has heard from more than one hundred witnesses including Kenneally himself.
In 2018, then Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan said he expected the work of the group to take up to one year.
Judge Michael White took over from Judge Barry Hickson in leading the investigation and, according to the Mail, is being paid a salary of approximately €218, 748.
Bill Kenneally is serving prison sentences of more than 18 years for abusing 15 boys between 1979 and 1990.
According to the Department of Justice, the final report is expected in the coming months.
'Grace' case
The cost of other inquiries has been explored by the Mail including the Commission of Investigation into the 'Grace' foster case which has cost just under €10.8 million.
The Farrelly Commission was established to investigate the care and protection of 'Grace' , an intellectually disabled woman who resided in a former foster home in the South-East which has been the subject of abuse allegations.
The commission began work in 2017 and has experienced numerous delays.
It was originally expected to cost a total of €5 million, with an additional €2.5 million in legal fees. However, the final report into the first phase of the investigation has yet to be published and costs had reached €10.76 million by the end of 2024.
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