A SHARP increase in consultancy services and provision for a settlement in the Bula court case contributed to a 70 per cent increase in operating costs at the Department of Transport, Energy and Communications to £17.9 million in 1995.
The Department's first annual report, issued yesterday, shows it paid more than £3.6 million for consultancy services last year, and provided a further £1.3 million for legal settlements and costs.
Presenting the report, Department assistant secretary, Mr Brendan Tuohy said the bulk of the consultancy costs were incurred in the Department on the rationalisation of the ESB and the establishment of strategic alliance for Telecom Eireann.
The cost of the long running court action by Bula Resources against the Minister for Energy and 16 other defendants was also reflected in the report, with the Department making a "notional" provision for settlements and costs of more than £1 million.
According to the report, the Department for Transport, Energy and Communications had net assets worth £13.9 million at the end of 1995.
The report and financial statements - the first to be presented by a Government department - were prepared as part of a pilot study under the Civil Service Strategic Management Initiative, a project which aims to improve departmental efficiency.
In a new approach, the accounts have been prepared on an accruals basis, to reflect obligations to pay or receive cash in the future in the same way that all commercial organisation compile financial information.
Departmental costs and services, usually reported in the Comptroller and Auditor General's annual report and the Exchequer accounts, have traditionally reflected the cash position of each department at the end of each year.
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