Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

The current chairman and board of FÁS were appointed by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment in 2006, in accordance with the provisions of the Labour Services Act 1987.

I met with the chairman and some members of the board of FÁS on 28 November and expressed my strong dissatisfaction at the events that had taken place in the public affairs division in FÁS. At the meeting the board assured me that action had been taken to deal with these matters. It also assured me that more robust structures with enhanced controls are now in place. This will help accelerate the audit work already under way in the corporate affairs area. It also will help FÁS to interface with the Comptroller and Auditor General in his examination of the effectiveness of the management and control systems in FÁS, which I understand he is to begin shortly. The FÁS internal audit function is also being strengthened.

In addition, the board agreed that a full examination of past practices is required to ensure the organisation can move forward with best practice, corporate governance procedures in place. I understand the normal annual internal audit examination by the Comptroller and Auditor General is already under way in FÁS. This audit will include an examination of internal procedures and governance arrangements within the organisation.

In my view, FÁS should continue to remain focused on its core mission, given the employment and training challenges currently facing the country. I express my strong support for the work of the new interim director general, the chairman and the other members of the board in that regard. In particular, I wish to acknowledge the ongoing commitment and importance of the staff of FÁS in helping us to meet the labour market challenges we face now and into the future.

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