Mick Clifford: Inland Fisheries Ireland’s litany of issues is like ‘RTÉ without the celebrities’

From its fleet of uninsured vehicles to unanswered questions about the use of Aasleagh Lodge, we are a long way from resolving the bizarre anomalies within the body charged with protecting Ireland’s rivers and lakes

An employee who previously unsuccessfully tendered to rent Aasleagh Lodge on the Mayo-Galway border from Inland Fisheries Ireland was later allowed to rent out the lodge and holiday cottages without the knowledge of the board.  Picture: David Farrell/Western People

Last year, RTÉ’s travails dominated so much attention in the body politic that the toils of another public body went completely under the radar. Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has been drowning in questions about the use of public money.

One parliamentarian last year described it as “RTÉ without the celebrities”. Another suggested the body was “halfway between Balllymagash and Killinaskully.”