THE former director of internal auditing at Fás has made a damning attack on the Comptroller and Auditor General’s office, claiming it facilitated an attempted cover-up at the state training agency.

PRIMARY principals have been put in an unfair position by their union’s work-to-rule directives because they have legal obligations towards pupils, a conference heard yesterday.

IRELAND’S “cute hoor” culture must be challenged if the country is to mend its “battered reputation overseas”, a conference in Dublin heard yesterday.

LAST year several high-ranking public employees were afforded the sanctuary offered by early retirement.

The Tánaiste Mary Coughlan has defended the Government's decision to pay former FAS boss Rody Molloy a €900,000 severance top-up after more revelations about wasteful spending at the State agency.

FORMER Fás boss Rody Molloy got a severance package worth almost €900,000 more than would have been payable to a comparable public servant taking early retirement.

A CULTURE of flagrant spending devoid of scrutiny or scruples at the state training agency Fás has been laid bare.

Another damning report into FÁS has shown how the agency and its former Director General Rody Molloy spent tens of thousands of euro on tickets for matches and concerts.

TÁNAISTE Mary Coughlan has revealed she will announce the new board for the embattled state training and employment agency Fás next week with a raft of strict changes that will control its governance.

TÁNAISTE Mary Coughlan was embroiled in an explosive row last night over the leaking of parts of confidential reports into financial controversies in Fás.

The Taoiseach has rejected claims from Labour that the Government acted illegally when it paid off former FAS boss Rody Molloy.

JUST 12 trainees have completed courses at a €6.7m Fás college which opened at the start of the year, prompting the Dáil’s Public Accounts watchdog (PAC) to launch an investigation.

THE golden handshake deal agreed with former Fás boss Rody Molloy was in breach of the Government’s own rules, which state it should have been sent to cabinet for approval by all ministers.

It has emerged the Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan approved terms of a generous severance package for former FAS Director General Rody Molloy.

A senior board member at FAS says he has found fresh instances of large financial deals being hidden by the former management of the state training agency.

FINANCE Minister Brian Lenihan has dismissed arequest from a powerful Dáil committee to specifically review lucrative top-up pension deals for senior public servants.

POLITICAL and other spin doctors know how to manage a crisis. The critical factor is to hang on. They believe virtually all news media cycles are “nine-day wonders”.

YOU offered three contrasting caricatures on the evolving relationship between the Christian churches and Irish society (October 24).

AND the circus rolled on. How suddenly John O’Donoghue’s lust for the little luxuries in life now seem almost tame compared to the bizarre €70,000 bonus handed to Brendan Drumm.

HEALTH Minister Mary Harney defended the controversial €70,000 bonus paid to the HSE chief executive Brendan Drumm, saying he “does a fantastic job”.

The decision of the Health Service Executive to provide its chief executive, Professor Brendan Drumm, with a bonus of over €70,000 is another breathtaking example of contemptible arrogance.

The Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, has again defended the so-called golden handshake given to former FAS director general Rody Molloy last year.

The Dáil's public spending watchdog is calling on the Minister for Finance to take measures to prevent a repeat of the Rody Molloy "golden handshake" in other state boards.

THE Dáil’s spending watchdog has upped the ante in its probe of Fás, demanding further explanations on what knowledge its board had about wasteful spending.

THE Government’s story on the €1 million-plus pay-off to Fás boss Rody Molloy changed again yesterday as Tánaiste Mary Coughlan admitted she did know he was being allowed to keep a luxury state car.

The Dáil’s public spending watchdog tonight called for a review of top-up payments to outgoing chiefs of state bodies.

Enterprise Minister Mary Coughlan has admitted that she was aware the former director general of FAS wanted to retain his company car.

ANSWERS have been demanded of Tánaiste Mary Coughlan after she said a fear of legal action was not the deciding factor when awarding the departing director general of Fás a bumper pension.

FORMER Fás boss Rody Molloy refused to accept the findings of an internal audit report on overspending in 2007, complaining to the board of the agency that the investigation did not show “courtesy” to senior management.

TÁNAISTE Mary Coughlan has denied she was overruled by the Taoiseach on a decision to publicly express confidence in the Fás board following a recent report on the state agency by the spending watchdog, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).

THE coming few weeks could be very interesting politically. John Gormley has said that the Green Party will withdraw from government if the party’s rank and file do not approve a new programme for government by a two-thirds majority. That could prove particularly problematical, but then maybe he can secure some astonishing concessions from Fianna Fáil in the current circumstances.

Green Party leader John Gormley says mechanisms need to be put in place to ensure that the right people are appointed to state boards.

The chairman of the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee has expressed disappointment at the Government's slow response to the spending controversy at FÁS.

THE Government is under pressure to explain why the former Fás chief, Rody Molloy, got to keep an expensive company car along with his pension and golden handshake when he left the agency following an expenses scandal last year.

TAOISEACH Brian Cowen has urged every citizen to support the Lisbon Treaty in tomorrow’s referendum, insisting a Yes vote will help Ireland achieve economic recovery.

THE Lisbon campaign continued to enthral the nation to the very end last night as its final moments exploded in a flurry of sex, lies and tickertape.

Brian Lenihan seems to be the only senior Government politician who attempts to give effective leadership. FF’s minor upward blip in the polls is due to his assertive confidence ... He can chart a course for future positive direction for the nation, based on realism and straight speaking

CRAMMED awkwardly into the window of Arnott’s, Declan Ganley and Micheál Martin were wedged between the perfume counters, but Mairead McGuinness could smell only one thing — testosterone.

LABOUR has challenged Government claims that the €1m “golden handshake” for former Fás director general Rody Molloy was in line with official procedure.

Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise has insisted that she is focused on continuing in her job despite growing calls for her to be removed from the position.

CONTROVERSY over the golden handshake to former Fás boss Rody Molloy has entered the Lisbon campaign, with Sinn Féin referring to the Government’s handling of the issue in the party’s call for a No vote in Friday’s referendum.

ANGER at the massive €1.1 million payout to former Fás boss Rody Molloy continued to rage last night after the Government changed its story on the “golden goodbye” for a third time.

Minister for State Billy Kelleher has defended the Tánaiste Mary Coughlan’s handling of the Rody Molloy issue.

Tánaiste Mary Coughlan has said that the legal basis for the €1m golden handshake awarded to ex-FÁS boss Rody Molloy was agreed under the legislation which set up the agency.