Two local authority officers in Kilkenny were found to have been engaged in private practice in the past, according to the county manager, Mr P.J. Donnelly.
In a report to the Department of the Environment and Local Government, Mr Donnelly said a further three officers came to the attention of the local authority, but no evidence of a breach of regulations could be established.
The report is based on inquiries carried out since January 4th, when the Department of the Environment asked each city and county manager to check if officers were doing work incompatible with their public duties.
In his single-page report, furnished to the Department last week and circulated to city councillors on Monday, Mr Donnelly said it had been established that two officers had in the past been engaged in private practice. "One of these officers has since left the employment of the local authority, and a letter of warning has been issued to the other."
All officers, he said, had been given a copy of the Department's circular of January 4th and the regulations prohibiting private work conflicting with public duties.
"All of the members of the [county] council and corporation, together with the local media, were asked to report any matter of concern to the county secretary/town clerk. The public was also invited to assist. No member of the council or corporation or local media submitted any report."
He had also instructed the appropriate officers to carry out the necessary checks.
Mr Donnelly also said new procedures had been put in place, principally a register of planning application practitioners. "The conduct of all officers in the two local authorities will be kept under continuous review to ensure full compliance with the regulations.
"I am now satisfied that none of the officers in either local authority is at present in breach of the regulations. Therefore, I have full confidence in the planning process and all the officers who have an involvement therein," the report concluded.