The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform says it is up to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to decide if its Chairperson John McGuinness should continue on in his role.

The Fianna Fail TD is under pressure to resign as Chair of the spending watchdog committee.

It comes after he said a case could be made for taxpayers to pay for spouses of Minister to travel abroad with them on official trips. It is reported that the Fianna Fail TD argued the case with civil servants in an e-mail in 2007.

A number of deputies have called for Mr. McGuinness to consider his position or resign.

"I just don't think it's acceptable"

Yesterday, Independent TD Finian McGrath said "I think we do need an independent chairing the Public Accounts Committee, that's something we should look at as well" he said.

When asked if he thought Mr. McGuinness should resign, he replied "I think so, yeah - I just don't think it's acceptable" he added.

Another committee member - Simon Harris of Fine Gael - said Mr. Guinness needed to consider if the credibility of the spending watchdog is being undermined.

In a tweet Deputy Harris, who is a member of the PAC, said the credibility of the spending watchdog "cannot be undermined and the Chairman needs to consider that".

Independent Shane Ross also said that taxpayers paying for spouses travel should not be allowed. "I think there should be a quite, straight forward rule: the answer is no, they shouldn't".

"It doesn't matter whether it's for Patrick's Day or anything else - I think at the present circumstances it is absolutely out of the question that government Ministers should bring their wives or their husbands to any of these events at the expense of the taxpayer".

"I have no problem I suppose about hem bringing them to these events if they pay for them themselves - but at the moment we're in a situation where every single penny counts" he added.

However John McGuinness insisted he had done nothing untoward saying he was only seeking clarification on the matter.

"I have considered it, I don't see any difficulty with it whatsoever; maybe Simon might let me know what his difficulty might be" he said.

"But as far as I'm concerned there was nothing untold here - there was clarification sought, clarification was given, my wife did not travel on the trade mission in question and there was no cost therefore to the State relative to that" he added.

John McGuinness is no stranger to controversy, as Newstalk's Louise Kelly explains in one minute.