€10m rental overpayment like 'scoring an own goal having been three goals ahead'

Miesian Plaza, Dublin, where the OPW has overpaid rent by €10m. File Picture: Gareth Chaney

The head of the Office of Public Works (OPW) — which has responsibility for a rental overpayment of €10m on a government building — has described the issue as like “scoring an own goal having been three goals ahead”.

OPW commissioner Maurice Buckley told the public accounts committee (PAC) that he doesn’t believe the multimillion-euro overpayment on Miesian Plaza in Dublin, the headquarters of several Government departments, can not be recovered.

Describing the overall project, which was first leased in late 2016 but which remained vacant for a further 18 months, as a “great success”, Mr Buckley said that the issue “will not go away”.

“I intend to make sure that the public is done right by with regard to this situation.”

Under questioning by Marc MacSharry, Mr Buckley said the Fianna Fáil TD was focusing on a small problem concerning a successful project.

“It has taken the shine off a successful project. It is as if, like in football, we were three goals ahead and conceded an own goal at the end,” he said.

He disagreed that the OPW has no legal recourse to recoup the rental payment, which resulted from an incorrect measurement standard being used to assess the building prior to the lease being agreed.

“Legally we have strong advice that we do [have recourse],” he said. 

“We’re still in discussions, and where there’s goodwill on both sides, and I see that there is, then something can be done. I don’t accept that the money is gone.”

The meeting heard that the construction of a new Garda headquarters on Military Rd in Dublin 8 will be completed on time before the end of 2022, when the force is due to exit its current accommodation on Harcourt Square in the city. That project is now set to cost €86m, up from the original projected cost of €80m.

Mr Buckley said a contingency plan is in place should the works not be completed on time, which could involve the construction of temporary accommodation.

He said the redevelopment of the Leinster House complex had likewise gone over budget prior to completion, coming in at a total cost of €18m against a budget of €11m. Mr Buckley said the completed job could not have been as well done in any other country.