Kenny questions Tánaiste over Fás spending

THE FORMER chief executive of State training agency Fás was given an extra 4½ years’ pensionable service to ensure his “speedy departure”, and avoid litigation, Tánaiste Mary Coughlan has reiterated in the Dáil.

As Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny questioned the Tánaiste’s knowledge about a controversial €1 billion spending in the agency, for which chief executive Rody Molloy resigned, Ms Coughlan refuted charges that she was “aware of” or “complicit in” the actions of senior managers in the agency.

She also told the Dáil that the Cabinet had this week signed off on new legislation regarding the structure of the Fás board and she insisted that “I do not expect that there should be any loss of taxpayers’ money” which was why a file on the controversy was with the Director of Public Prosecutions.

During leaders’ questions, in which the Tánaiste was standing in for the Taoiseach, Mr Kenny noted that the board of Fás had the Tánaiste’s “full support” in February and again in June. “You as Minister said that all of these matters in the public domain were in the past” yet “now the board is to resign”.

He asked why the board had now lost the Government’s confidence. “Is it because of the €600,000 ad which was placed and never delivered? Is it about the car that was purchased and never arrived? Or is it about the €622,000 which is now the subject of a file sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions in respect of which nobody seems to know what the money was spent on or where it went?”

Calling on Ms Coughlan to justify why she signed off on the additional years’ of pension service, he asked why “where it is clear there is incompetence, gross incompetence in some instances, this is rewarded”.

This “is what causes so much anger for people across the country”.

If a member of the Garda steps out of line in a serious manner their pension is ended.

“In this case as in others and the regulator included, there has been a very hefty reward for incompetence.”

Ms Coughlan insisted that “I did not make the decision lightly” to give Mr Molloy the extra years in service, and it was done “with the consent of the Minister for Finance”. The Tánaiste said that at that time “I thought the most appropriate action would be his speedy departure.”

She said she and the Minister for Finance had worked “within the terms” of appropriate legislation “on the basis that I was of the view that the speedy departure of the director general from that organisation was appropriate. The alternative was to spend taxpayers’ money for six, eight, nine months in the Four Courts and I thought his would not be the most appropriate action.” Labour finance spokeswoman Joan Burton asked if the former executive threatened to resign.

Ms Coughlan said the speedy departure was the best option “on the basis that these matters were destroying an organisation whose role on behalf of the people who are unemployed is paramount”.