€45k just to get colleges to talk to each other about merger

More than €45,000 of public money is being spent just to get two third-level colleges in the south-east talking to each other about the possibility of resuming merger talks.

The figure includes at least €33,000 to fund a report, last July, for Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan. The report’s author could not get management of Carlow and Waterford institutes of technology in the same room in the six months he spent working with them.

The difficulties were attributed by the author, Higher Education Authority ex-chairman Michael Kelly, to the continuing distrust between WIT and IT Carlow.

Last October, WIT withdrew from talks on the merger, which is a requirement for two or more institutes of technology before an application can be made to create a technological university (TU), including the one mooted for the south-east. This necessity will be confirmed in a bill governing the proposed TU sector, to be published by the minister before the end of 2015.

Mr Kelly evaluated the views of college management, staff, and local business and community interests. He suggested TU designation for the south-east colleges is achievable within three years, but said that an initial facilitation process to clear up issues between the colleges should be undertaken before the project can be resumed along the lines he suggested.

The governing bodies of both approved this idea in August, and Jane Williams has been appointed by the Department of Education to do the facilitation work.

Last month, the Department of Education refused to tell the Irish Examiner how much facilitation would cost, saying it was commercially sensitive and the overall cost would be provided once facilitation was completed.

Department secretary general Seán Ó Foghlú subsequently told the Dáil’s public accounts committee that the latest facilitation exercise will cost an estimated €12,000, depending on how long it takes.

He earlier said a full invoice is awaited in relation to the work of Mr Kelly, who told the committee he is part of a consultancy practice. Mr Ó Foghlú expects the cost to be “in the region of €33,000 to €35,000”.

The cost is unknown of four other facilitators previously engaged by the two colleges during the earlier stages of merger talks. Three external people were on a project implementation board set up in 2013, and another was appointed to try and break the impasse last September, two months before Mr Kelly was asked to intervene due to WIT’s withdrawal.

While his report described them as facilitators, the Department of Education told the Irish Examiner that they were not. “The institutions have advised the department that they don’t consider that the persons previously involved could be classified as facilitators in the same way as the current process,” a department spokesperson said.

“Michael Kelly led a process of engagement with a wide range of stakeholders in the region and not just the two institutions. Mr Kelly did not undertake a process of facilitation between the two institutions but did recommend this as the first step in reinvigorating the TU -south-east] project.”

Ms Williams, of Sia Partners management consultants, chairs the Pensions Authority. She is a former chief executive of skills agency Forfás and an ex vice-president of IDA Ireland.