FÁS Board Members will resign

The chairman of Ireland's national training and employment agency FÁS has said that all its board members will resign in the wake of a report which showed a massive waste of taxpayer money.

Speaking earlier today on the This Week programme on RTÉ Radio 1, Peter McLoone (left) - who is in his day job the Secretary General of IMPACT, Ireland's largest public service trade union - stated there was "no time frame" from either the Taoiseach or the Tánaiste for the appointment of a new board, but that this was something to be clarified early next week.

He emphasised that the present board was only appointed in 2006 and was therefore "not responsible for earlier follies and misbehaviour" inside the agency. However, the board would not stand in the way of change and co-operate completely with the transition.

McLoone defended the board's actions and said it had "dealt with any issues that came before us". He and the whole board would "take responsibility for anything that happened while we were in office".

The move follows strong criticism of wasteful expenditure, including massive overspending on promotion at the agency, specified in detail in a report by John Buckley, Ireland's Comptroller & Auditor General, who investigated FÁS for almost a year. (see my entry of September 10th)

The investigation was ordered last year by the Tánaiste Mary Coughlan (right), who is in her capacity as Ireland's Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment responsible for FÁS.

However, she only acted after the independent Senator Shane Ross (left) had - in a lengthy and painstaking investigation of his own - exposed massive irregularities and waste of taxpayers' money on a colossal scale inside the state agency.

Without courageous and independent people like Shane Ross the truth about FÁS might still be unknown to us and subject to the usual government cover-up and denial.

The Emerald Islander

Massive Waste of Taxpayers' Money in FÁS

Ireland's national training and employment agency FÁS (Foras Áiseanna Saothair) has wasted vast amounts of taxpayers' money and exceeded its budgets regularly.

A new report by Ireland's Comptroller & Auditor General John Buckley, which is the result of a nearly year-long investigation, highlights "a substantial and prolonged breakdown in budgetary control" at the state agency.

One of the agency's most significant follies is a case especially highlighted in the report: FÁS did spend more than € 600,000 on a television advertisement that was never broadcast.

Mr. Buckley also found that general spending in FÁS exceeded budgets by up to 66%.

Nearly a year ago, when the scandalous money-wasting of FÁS became public knowledge, he was given the task to investigate the agency. (see my entries of September 22nd & 23rd, 2008)

Between 2002 and 2008, FÁS spent over € 48 million alone on advertising and promotional activities. This is the largest advertising spend in the non-commercial state sector, and for most of the period audited Ireland had almost full employment. Which means the agency had hardly anything to do and only very few 'customers'.

The Comptroller & Auditor General also found that budgetary control in FÁS was "poor" and expenditure in this area exceeded budgets by 38%.

As well as the € 600,000 spent on the un-used television advertisement, the agency spent a further € 600,000 with no services at all delivered.

Criticising the wasteful expenditure of FÁS, John Buckley said that "public procurement requirements were not met".

Overall, the report finds that advertising and promotional activities lacked strategic direction and that much of the advertising was ineffective in increasing awareness of FÁS services.

On the basis of what is known by now, there are good reasons to abolish FÁS as an independent agency and to divide its obligations between two government departments: Education (for the training elements) and Enterprise, Trade & Employment (for the work-related and employment duties).

It would also be sensible to prosecute FÁS employees who were responsible for the enormous spending spree and the massive waste of taxpayers' money and try to re-coup as much of it as possible from guilty individuals.
But as things are in Ireland, this is rather unlikely. Those close to the government here get away with everything and are never punished. The ordinary Irish people are instead burdened with the costs of government follies and the many failures and mistakes of its countless agencies.
If one would not know better, one might think Ireland is still a feudal state in the Middle Ages.

The Emerald Islander

For further details about the scandals and wastefulness of FÁS see also my entries of November 22nd, 25th, 26th & 27th, 2008.

Cowen praises disgraced former FÁS Boss

Taoiseach Brian Cowen (left) has commended the former FÁS Director General Rody Molloy, who resigned in disgrace late last night (see yesterday's entry), "on his decision to step down".

Cowen said that Molloy, a fellow Offaly man, had "made a valuable contribution to FÁS" and that "his resignation showed that confidence in him was justified because he has proved himself to be accountable".

When I heard these words, I first feared that there was something wrong with my ears.

But no, Cowen did indeed praise Rody Molloy (right), an unrepentant and arrogant sponger and selfish waster of taxpayers' money, who was forced to step down after eight years as Director General of the state's employment and training authority, after the brave independent Senator Shane Ross exposed the corrupt practices in the senior echelons of FÁS and the colossal amounts of money Molloy and some of his fellow directors had spent on themselves and on lavish corporate entertainment and foreign travel.

One has to pause here for a moment, let this sink in and reflect.

Molloy is a man who - as a public servant - wasted huge amounts of our money on things that were neither necessary nor justifiable. A man whose attitude was - and still is - that, as a large pig at the state's through, he was "entitled" to only the best and took uncontrolled advantage of every possible perk he could get.
And then there is the country's Prime Minister (and former Minister for Finance), who not only gave this man his "full support" when the scandal broke, saying that he was "a very good public servant", but who now - after his forced resignation - still praises him in the highest possible way, as if Molloy had just found the cure for cancer.

This is outrageous, and a scandal in itself! And adding his insult to the immense injury Molloy has caused the nation, Cowen describes him as "accountable". Has the Taoiseach now lost his mind completely?!
Accountable? If there is anything specifically Rody Molloy was not, then it is accountable.
He would still sit in his comfortable chair and enjoy the lifestyle of a king, had Senator Shane Ross not exposed the scandal.

Over the now six months as Taoiseach, Brian Cowen has shown no leadership qualities, but instead demonstrated on many occasions his incompetence, arrogance and lack of judgement. He has also again and again exposed his short-sighted and narrow-minded views on major policies, and in all this also been extremely rude, foul-mouthed and ill-mannered. In short, he is by far the worst Taoiseach this country has ever had.

But today's statement has added a new dimension to Brian Cowen. He has now publicly stated that he approves of corruption, spongers and the massive waste of taxpayers' money on a luxury lifestyle for the senior civil servants of this country. And all this at a time when we are in deep recession and face the worst financial crisis in living memory.

Anyone who can tolerate Brian Cowen any longer as the leader of our government and country must be completely blind, deaf and totally without moral fibre. The man is an utter disgrace and should resign as Taoiseach - and as TD - immediately!

However, he is still muddling on and pretends nothing has happened. And even the opposition is not (yet) willing to attack him in the way he deserves.

During Leaders' Questions in the Dáil today Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny (left) only said that "the entire board of FÁS should also consider their positions". Quite right, and well put!
But Kenny should have called for the resignation of Brian Cowen and his Tánaiste Mary Coughlan - who, as Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment, is directly responsible for FÁS - as well.

Yesterday Kenny highlighted a € 410 bill from a nail and beauty salon in Florida, which was paid with an official FÁS credit card. He asked if this was what taxpayers' money should be spent on, and again he was spot on.
This one outrageous example is, however, only the tip of the iceberg. Kenny could and should have been a lot more forceful on the matter, and we all would have applauded him.
But one of the problems with Fine Gael is that they are way too soft on the government and let Cowen and his cronies get away with too much incompetence, arrogance and blunder.

Meanwhile FÁS says that it will "announce the appointment of an acting Director General for an interim period, pending the recruitment of a full-time successor to Mr. Molloy".
It does not surprise me that they are very fast in shoring up the damage, as they are still hoping to get away with their scandalous culture of self-serving perks. What happened over years was not only done by Rody Molloy, although he was in charge, set the example and approved of everything. There were and still are many more culprits in the organisation, and they should go as well. How could we ever again trust FÁS if they remained in their positions?

Fine Gael TD Bernard Allen, the chairman of the Dáil's Public Accounts Committee (PAC), said that Rody Molloy had "no choice but to resign".
He told RTÉ that he had hoped to have him before the committee tomorrow, to ask him to explain his € 5.7 million expenditure for 2007. But with his resignation Molloy escaped this planned grilling by TDs.

Rody Molloy's resignation is unlikely to end questions about financial controls at FÁS, especially as the PAC and the Comptroller and Auditor General were already investigating spending at the organisation for quite some time. (see my entries of September 22nd & 23rd)
In a statement FÁS has said it will "continue to co-operate with the investigations", which will now want to know more about financial controls in the organisation, and how closely spending by senior management was supervised by the board and the government.

Well, they don't really have a choice, have they? The cat is out of the bag now, and everyone in the country knows about the scandalous practices at FÁS. People are rightfully outraged, and they want to see this quagmire of corruption and self-serving arrogance drained and sorted out once and for all.
In my opinion the best solution would be to abolish the whole organisation and replace it with a smaller, better and more efficient agency, directly controlled by the Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment. But in order to get that, we first need a new minister in charge of this department.

The Emerald Islander

Kenny accuses Government of Cowardice

Today Dáil Éireann (left), the lower house of the Irish Parliament, has resumed its sittings after the long summer recess, which has been criticised by opposition politicians and media alike.
Especially with the Irish economy in crisis and many other problems coming to light, it is hard to understand how our legislators can justify such a long holiday.

The first session began forcefully, with an attack by the opposition. Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny (right) started the parliamentary season with strong words, claiming that "the government failed to take any notice of the warning signs of an economic downturn".

At Leaders' Questions this morning, Kenny accused Taoiseach Brian Cowen of "gross political cowardice" for not holding an emergency debate on the economy. He also criticised the government for "wastage of tax-payers' money", which is outlined in the Comptroller & Auditor General's report. (for details see my entry from September 22nd)

The Taoiseach said that successive governments must learn lessons from reports issued by the C&AG. Brian Cowen (left) also defended the government's record on the economy.

He said it was "taking action" in bringing forward the Budget date. A balanced and coherent plan would be presented on that day.

Well, so far the earlier than usual date for the Budget is all the government has done in relation to the economic crisis. A first step, one could say, but not much to show for.

Fine Gael made its protest over the lack of an emergency debate quite clear and ended a routine voting arrangement with the government, known as 'pairing'. (That means that in case a TD from the government - usually a minister - has to be absent from the Dáil on important business, a member of the opposition will abstain as well or not vote, to keep the balance of power. This system comes originally from the British House of Commons, but was - like so many other things - adopted by the Dáil in true Irish copy-cat fashion. Without this agreement, we might see now the opposition win some parliamentary votes, perhaps.)

The downturn in the economy will be discussed during Fine Gael private members' time this evening.
However, Brian Cowen will not be listening to that. By then he will be on his way to New York, to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations. It is of course much more enjoyable to mix and mingle with world leaders than to face the blunt facts of incompetence, blunder and economic failure at home.

The Emerald Islander

Serious Allegations against FÁS

An investigation into the expenditure of FÁS (Foras Áiseanna Saothair), Ireland's national training and employment authority, will be undertaken by the State's Comptroller & Auditor General, John Buckley.

(see also my yesterday's entries)

This official step has been taken reluctantly by the Tánaiste (and Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment) Mary Coughlan (right), after speculations and serious allegations in the media created a demand for answers to two questions:

1) Why is FÁS getting so much money?
2) What are they doing with it all?

It has emerged that the annual budget of FÁS is more than one billion Euros, and it has steadily increased over the recent years of economic boom, growth and prosperity.

One wonders why the national training and employment authority was receiving and spending a lot more money during a time of very low unemployment, when they had really little to do, than during times of high unemployment.

The matter was first raised in Seanad Éireann by one man, independent Senator Shane Ross (left), who remained at first a lonely voice demanding clarity about the running and financial affairs of FÁS. None of the 59 other Senators seemed interested or offered support.
However, after Senator Ross went public - including an appearance on the popular Late Late Show (on RTÉ 1 television) last Friday evening - the media as well as several opposition politicians began to take up the matter as well.

Even though the Tanaiste declared that she has confidence in the leadership of FÁS, there are many serious questions about the operation of the agency. John Buckley will need some time to investigate, and it will be very interesting to read his report in due course.

The Emerald Islander

FÁS under Investigation

An investigation into the expenditure of FÁS, Ireland's national training and employment agency, over the past eight years is to be undertaken by John Buckley, the State's Comptroller & Auditor General. (see also my entry from earlier today)

A spokesperson for the Tánaiste (and Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment) Mary Coughlan, who made the announcement, said the investigation was "in response to speculation and negative publicity about FÁS".

Asked if there was any reaction from his department, the spokesperson added that "the Minister has confidence in the leadership of FÁS and will wait for the outcome of the examination, before deciding whether or not any action is warranted".

How the State wastes our Money

Brian Lenihan, our new Minister for Finance, is busy with looking for extra money anywhere inside the large State apparatus, in order to plug the gaps that incompetence, imprudence and sloppy management have created under his predecessor, the current Taoiseach.

And he is certainly reading the just published annual report of the State's Comptroller & Auditor General (someone very important, of whose existence hardly anyone knows). It might give him some extra grey hair or headaches to learn how much of taxpayers' money was - in 2007 alone - wasted by the Irish government and her many departments and agencies.

John Buckley, the Comptroller & Auditor General, strongly criticised HSE managers for failing to act promptly to address a budget overrun of € 245 million. In his annual report for 2007 he also criticises them for "assuming they would be 'bailed out' with extra funding".

He describes elements of the health service as "fragmented, disjointed and difficult for patients to access".
By November 2006, the HSE knew that its 2007 allocation for existing services would be around € 341 million short. But senior management did not implement a break-even plan to secure savings until July 2007, in the end securing savings of only € 96 million.

Previous practice on budget overruns had led to the expectation by certain managers that they would be 'bailed out' with extra funding. "This 'wait and see' culture must be discouraged," says Mr. Buckley.

Taxpayers will also be fascinated to learn that the Revenue Commissioners made an undisclosed voluntary settlement of almost € 1.7 million with the Inspector of Taxes. The Comptroller & Auditor General says the payment related to unpaid benefit-in-kind tax for the Revenue's own staff. (One wonders how competent they are with other people's money if they cannot even run their own office properly...)

The report also says that 200 new Garda cars - costing € 3.8 million - lay idle for 14 months after they were purchased, because the Garda garage could not cope with fitting out such a large number of vehicles with their existing facilities and manpower.

Free election literature for Oireachtas members cost the state up to an extra € 3.3 million because, for legal reasons, the State did not qualify for a bulk discount available to other An Post clients.

Mr. Buckley criticises the continuing payment of special border duty allowances to members of the Defence Forces, long after the original reason for them disappeared.
He also highlights a savings scheme that cost € 1 million a year to administer, despite generating less than € 4.5 million annually.
And over € 9 million was advanced to local bodies for flood relief, despite the fact that it will not be utilised until 2009.

The Comptroller & Auditor General raises also concerns about the lack of competitive processes in the procurement of goods and services in the prison service.

If you are interested in more details, the full report is available under this link:
http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/0922/comptrollerreport.pdf

It makes some very interesting reading.

The Emerald Islander