Prison bosses criticised after lack of tender for €95m contract

Prison bosses were tonight taken to task for awarding contracts worth around €95m to one company without going to tender.

Glenbeigh Construction was given 73 projects at 15 prisons between 2004 and 2007.

The Dublin-based company was initially awarded a €2.37m contract after a public competition but the Irish Prison Service (IPS) awarded the additional work without putting it out to tender.

The Dáil's Public Accounts Committee said the contract had "exposed the taxpayer to potential and unnecessary risks of claims from other construction companies who could claim that they were denied a fair shot at the work in the capital programme."

Glenbeigh, which was awarded a number of previous contracts with the IPS, was contracted in 2004 to build an accommodation block at Loughan House in Co Cavan.

In a report the Committee said the initial project was to build 50 spaces but instead a 60 bed unit was completed at Loughan at a cost of €4.7m.

In the tender document the IPS said it reserved the right to extend the scope of the contract to take on a number of other projects.

The Dáil watchdog said it understood the nature of the tender notice meant the value of the contracts should not have exceeded €6m.

But PAC chairman Bernard Allen said there was no evidence of any "cronyism" in awarding the extra contracts and claimed the IPS blamed pressure to provide more space.

Mr Allen said: "While we note the arguments made by the Irish Prison Service and we note that their procedures have changed since 2007, we do not accept the validity of their arguments or that they could have done things differently.

"I think that they were badly advised and should have gone to the Attorney General before they entered this series of contracts that eventually came to 97 million euro."

The €97m contracts included 42 million euro work in Castlerea Prison, €5.71m in Shelton Abbey, €4.443m in Mountjoy and €20.9m in "special service wide projects".

The Committee also said quantity surveyors KMCS, which was hired by the Prison Service to give advice on the 2004 construction tender process, also appointed project managers for 22 projects without being them going out to tender.

The PAC also hit out at the Department of Finance with Mr Allen claiming officials showed "smugness and indifference" when questioned about procurement practices.

"As a committee, we find the Department quite frustrating at times," Mr Allen said.

"While it draws up guidelines, it does nothing to ensure they are enforced and while it has concerns were there are breaches, it does little or nothing to follow-up on those.

"In our view the department needs to become far more assertive."

The PAC said €69m worth of goods and services were awarded without tender across government agencies last year, with the Irish Prison Service the worst offender.

The watchdog claimed it awarded 154 contracts worth €22m over the year.

In a statement the IPS said it had complied with legislation and EU procurement law.

"The Irish Prison Service is satisfied that value for money was achieved in respect of works carried out under the framework agreement," it said.

It also highlighted there was scope to extend the contract and said it was coming under pressure from overcrowding.