£10m rent was owed to Dublin Corporation in 1996

Dublin Corporation failed to collect almost £10 million of its rent roll in 1996, the latest year for which figures are available.

The tables are contained in the second volume of "Value for Money Studies", which was carried out by the Local Government Audit Service and published yesterday. The first volume was published in 1996.

But details on which local authority is the most efficient at sweeping the roads or at water production are missing. The study deals mostly with accounting periods up to 1996, and detailed analysis is not available for all local authorities.

For example, on water production and distribution - recently identified by the ESRI as a vital catalyst to property development - the report gives details of only eight local authorities which were part of a pilot study.

On housing maintenance, only the results of a pilot scheme involving eight local authorities are compared. Not all local authorities responded to all questionnaires.

The study shows that Dublin Corporation lost £152,747 in a stock write-off in 1994, while Cork Corporation recorded a trading profit on its stocks of £78,531. The worst trading loss was £108,924 recorded by Clare County Council.

South Dublin County Council had the highest potential earnings from commercial rates among county councils at just over £27 million, followed by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown at £25 million and Fingal at £18 million. The lowest was Leitrim with £798,027. The highest potential earner was Dublin Corporation, with £114.5 million.

However, the efficiency of the authorities at collecting the sums due to them paints a different picture. Clare County Council collected 98 per cent of its rates due, closely followed by Leitrim at 97.66 per cent, while Dublin collected just 81.76 per cent of the cash due. Lowest was Templemore UDC, which collected just 65.92 per cent of its £157,248 total.

Dublin Corporation had the largest potential housing rent roll at £44.5 million in 1996, of which it collected 78.9 per cent. Skibbereen Urban District Council had the smallest rent roll, at £47,845 but collected 93.64 per cent of that. Most efficient was Bray UDC in Co Wicklow, which collected 99.07 per cent of all rents and annuities due from its roll of £899,615.

The worst collector of housing rents and annuities in 1996 seemed to be Naas UDC, which collected just 64.37 per cent of its total of £315,716.

Housing loan repayments are treated separately and show that again Dublin Corporation had the largest amount collectable in 1996, a potential total of £9.9 million. It collected 78.89 per cent, or £7.8 million.

Ballinasloe UDC collected 100 per cent of its £1,836 loan repayments due. It appears that the authority which collected the least amount of housing loan repayments was Navan UDC, which collected just 52.79 per cent of its £1,074 total.

A separate audit of the local authorities' treasury management efficiency is being prepared.

Commenting on the results of the study yesterday, the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, said: "The delivery of value for money is seen as a cornerstone in the renewal and reform of the local government system."

He said it was "vital that local authorities develop greater efficiency and this can be achieved through value for money audits among other things".