Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 24 September 2020

Public Accounts Committee

Business of Committee

10:15 am

Photo of Marc MacSharryMarc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am aware Deputy Munster has an issue on the OPW so I do not know if the committee decided to bring it in on that basis. I think we should bring it in on this anyway. Miesian Plaza is where the Department of Health is located, in the former Bank of Ireland building on Baggot Street. The basic story is that the OPW did a deal with the landlord and, despite being advised by its internal personnel, used an old measurement mechanism to denote the square footage. That was incorrect. I think it ended up paying about €300,000 extra per annum in rent or €10 million over the course of the entire lease. We had a hearing here from the chairman of the OPW at the time who said it was this extraordinarily complex process of measurement that has changed. As an auctioneer, I can tell the committee it is not. Any of us in this room could probably manage to measure it. There was internal advice that highlighted the danger in mixing up the two measurement standards yet they still went ahead. The follow-on was that they were then going to go to the landlord and say they made a mistake and ask to be let off, which I doubt will happen. This update from 17 January last seems to indicate that they had a meeting and a discussion and were hoping to have another meeting. My best guess is they are not making any progress. At the committee meeting at the time, I asked if there was any disciplinary process afoot. The answer was "No", it was not a disciplinary matter. I asked why and they said, "Oh, well, it is complex" and so on. This is the classic thing from us all, whether politicians or public servants at a senior level. There are no consequences for our actions. There are no outcomes. When we do eventually spend €300,000 on some external report, the inevitable answer as prescribed by the hand of the terms of reference will be cultural or systemic failure. Nobody gets punished, there is no outcome, even when it costs the State €10 million. I have a problem with that. It is endemic across many of our Departments. I would like to have the OPW in to ask it precisely what is going on and at this late stage, having had more than a year to reflect on it, if there is any disciplinary action or if such mediocrity is accepted policy.

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