Public Accounts Committee intensifies Fás board probe
The Public Accounts Committee is writing to outgoing board member, Niall Saul, about his recent comments on the conduct of management. Mr Saul has said the board will eventually be vindicated in the Fás controversy and claimed the Comptroller and Auditor General has questions to answer.
It will also contact former director of corporate services Greg Craig to see if he will change his mind and give evidence before the committee.
It also wants full details of an internal audit of purchasing practices in Fás’ corporate affairs’ division.
On a broader level the Committee has called on Finance Minister Brian Lenihan to review procedures for granting generous pension top-ups for departing chief executives. It said the golden handshake negotiated with the former Fás director general Rody Molloy should not be the norm.
“The Committee is concerned that there are other high profile departures from state boards and the Fás example is but one,” it said.
The PAC agreed to the next stage of its probe in private session ahead of a separate meeting with justice officials yesterday.
This aspect of its work probed how the Irish Prison Service had not followed proper procedures in granting a €100 million rolling contract to Glenbeigh after an initial tender of €4.7m.
And as recently as November 2007 the IPS signed off on contracts with consultants KMCS for €1.8m without going to tender.
Secretary general of the justice department Sean Aylward claimed nobody had acted dishonourably in awarding these contracts.
He intervened after director general Brian Purcell said the firm had been retained for a number of contracts without the use of a tender even after new rules from the Department of Finance prohibited such arrangements.
Mr Aylward said the last contract was signed during a transitionary phase before the tender regulations became binding.
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