Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny this morning questioned whether the Tánaiste Mary Coughlan was complicit or aware of the financial irregularities at Fás.
A highly critical report earlier this month by the Comptroller Auditor General John Buckley into Fás advertising and promotional spending in 2002-2008 found that a total of €48 million was spent. There are two separate Garda investigations under way into spending at the agency.
Addressing the Dáil during Leaders' Questions this morning, Mr Kenny also called on the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to state why the agency's board had lost the confidence of the Government.
Ms Coughlan brought a new Bill before the Cabinet yesterday to give her the power to dissolve the 17-member Fás board and appoint a new board of just 11 members, Government sources have told The Irish Times. However, the legislation has to be amended further and has not yet been sent to the chief whip.
Mr Kenny asked Ms Coughlan if she had knowledge of issues that had emerged into the public domain over the past year, such as a €600,000 advert that was placed but was never delivered, the car that was "purchased but never arrived" or the sum of €622,000 that was the subject of file sent to the DPP.
Ms Coughlan rejected Mr Kenny’s charge, saying that when the internal audit report was made available to her, she asked the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) to carry out further investigation. She said the C&AG advised he wished to await the findings of the Public Accounts Committee.
"In the interim, a number of other actions were taken by me. Firstly, we saw the stepping down of the DG [director general], the appointment of an interim DG, and the appointment of a new DG,” she said.
Following the internal audit, the Fás board was advised to take on board Department of Finance regulations, which was done. "I do not accept there should be any loss of taxpayers' money . . . it is on that basis gardaí are investigating two matters, one of which is with the DPP," she said, adding that the C&AG report has been sent to the Garda Commissioner for further examination.
However, Mr Kenny said the Tánaiste's response was "another demonstration of a senior minister in a party that has been in Government for too long." He said she had "missed completely" the levels of anger and frustration "among people who are very hard-pressed people" when they see misspending and misuse of money and "and nothing happens".
He also called on Ms Coughlan to justify signing off on former Fás director-general Rody Molloy receiving a top-up to his pension as part of his agreement to leave the agency this year. "Can you justify that on the basis of targets not being achieved, on the basis of incompetence, and on the basis of that being admitted by a director general of a very important and massive organisation in this country."
The Tánaiste said the decision on Mr Molloy's pension package was "a decision not taken lightly". She said this was taken on the basis of the Labour Services Act 1987, which provides for the terms and conditions for Fás director generals.
"I thought that the most appropriate thing that needed to be done was his speedy departure. . . . the alternative was to spend taxpayers' money for the next six, eight, nine months in the Four Courts," she said.
