Garda cars in storage 14 months after purchase

MORE than 200 Garda vehicles bought in December 2006 were still in storage in February of this year, while almost 1,000 vehicles bought for the force in 2006 were still not assigned for any use by the end of that year.

The C&AG report also found overspend in other departments falling under the Justice brief, including incidental expenses for prison officers.

However, the chronic delays in getting Garda vehicles out onto the streets prompted some of the sharpest criticism from the C&AG.

The report notes that:

Most of the 726 vehicles certified as delivered by December 21, 2006, were in fact held in the compounds of the supplier and the fitting out sub-contractor.

216 vehicles bought in December 2006 at a cost of €3.8m were still in storage in February 2008.

The average time loss arising from the delay in putting into use 941 vehicles bought in 2006, but not assigned to operational duties until 2007 and 2008, was the equivalent of 587 vehicles for a year-long period.

The C&AG writes that the need to boost Garda vehicle numbers “did not translate into an effective operational plan to efficiently and effectively use the resources provided”.

“Large numbers of vehicles were unnecessarily paid for in 2006 and lay idle throughout 2007,” adding that more cost-effective measures needed to be explored regarding the management of the Garda fleet.

The Accounting Officer refuted the claim that many vehicles were lying idle, but admitted it was “taking longer than anticipated” to implement procedures for managing the fleet, with a an “optimisation study” due to be completed in the coming months.

The report also shows that the Department of Justice had an overspend of €9.79m last year.

Some areas saw greater than anticipated spending, including:

An additional €13.2m to provide accommodation to those in Direct Provision.

An extra €4.2m paid out on higher than expected legal costs from the Barr tribunal.

€7.3m on IT systems.

The report also shows that, to the end of last year, almost €40m was spent on the Morris tribunal, and almost €20m on the Barr tribunal.

The largest single saving, of some €16.2m, was because of a wait in developing children’s detention facilities and the fact that some Garda Youth Diversion Projects did not come on stream until the late last year.

The Garda Síochána had an overall surplus of €3.7m last year, although there was some overspending, including €2.2m on policing the situation in Rossport and on Operation Anvil.