PAC to investigate how more than €9m spent on unused airstrips

Spending of more then €9 million on airstrips that were never used is among a number of cases involving public money which are to be investigated by the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

At its meeting yesterday the committee said it wanted more information on the airstrip spend, as well as a report on a possible shortfall of tens of millions of euro in the value of properties assigned to the State by the Catholic Church.

The committee also said it wanted more information on properties owned by the Department of the Marine which remain unused even though individuals had attempted to lease a number of them.

In a further move the committee said it was writing to Garda Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan in relation to the costs incurred by the Garda in its dealings over many years with Ian Bailey.

In a wide-ranging discussion with Comptroller and Auditor General Séamus McCarthy, the committee also questioned spending at the National Library of Ireland and a theft of a “significant” amount of material from it.

Improved access

Responding to questions from Labour TD Joe Costello, the secretary general of the Department of Arts Heritage and the Gaeltacht Joe Hamill said the airstrips on Inishbofin and in Cleggan in Co Galway were developed over about five years up to 2009 to improve access to the islands.

He said the plan to extend air services from the Aran Islands to Inishbofin and Tory had been included in the National Development Plan. This was at a time when the budget for the State’s islands was about €40 million a year. The budget was now €600,000 he said. Arrangements were now being made to transfer the airstrips to the Coast Guard, Mr Hamill said.

Proposals to provide a landing strip on Tory had not gone beyond the planning process.

Mr Hamill said a detailed report would be prepared for the committee.

Redress scheme

Mr McCarthy told the committee that the Catholic Church had proposed to hand over property valued at €100 million as part of its contribution to the redress scheme, agreed 12 years ago. He said 64 properties had been handed over with a value of €42 million, leaving 17 properties where there were complications such as title difficulties.

Committee chairman John McGuinness of Fianna Fáil said the committee would seek more information, particularly on whether the properties were valued at the “top end of the market”.

Independent TD Shane Ross asked the committee to look into Department of the Marine property at Howth Harbour and why it remained unused. Fine Gael’s John Deasy said there were many properties in the department’s ownership across the State which were not used.

The committee also heard the full costs of the investigation of Mr Bailey in relation to the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier was not available. Mr McGuinness said the committee would write to Ms O’Sullivan to tell her they would ask her for information on the costs when she next appeared before it.

In relation to the theft from the National Library, acting director Catherine Fahy said she had been told she could say very little as there was an ongoing Garda investigation.