Mr. Seamus McCarthy:

It is important to remember that a previous report by my predecessor as Comptroller and Auditor General in March 2008 which was published in June 2008 was considered at a meeting of the Committee of Public Accounts. I do not have the exact date when it was considered, but that report followed on from an examination conducted by Mr. Tim Dalton, former Secretary General of the then Department of Justice and Equality, of governance matters arising, I think, from the development of Shelbourne Park. The report pointed out that there were difficulties with governance. Some of the key findings included considerable day-to-day involvement by directors in the business of the organisation, including the provision of services; a failure to clearly outline the functions reserved to the board and those delegated to the executive until September 2002 when Bord na gCon formally adopted a code of corporate governance; a division of duties which served to limit the CEO's involvement in a key part of the organisation - Shelbourne Park and Harold's Cross - in the period from 1997 to 2003; a tendency for the chairman to adopt a hands-on approach and, at a later stage, ineffective communication between the board and the CEO and a failure to adequately involve the board in the planning and development of Shelbourne Park in 2005. There is a history of difficulties in Bord na gCon around these developments and their governance and oversight. What is disappointing is that in the period on which we have now reported these problems continued. It could be that they were not adequately dealt with at the time and that adequate structures were not put in place. There are resonances of these findings in the report now presented on the situation in Limerick. That is part of the legacy with which the current board and executive are dealing.