HSE takes over CRC after board resigns

The Health Service Executive has appointed an interim administrator to run the Central Remedial Clinic. It will put in place new governors to oversee the organisation following the resignation of its board of directors last night on foot of the top-up payments controversy.

The CRC said last night all members of its board of governors had stepped down with immediate effect. It said that board members who were directors of Friends and Supporters of CRC, CRC Medical Devices or the Care Trust had also resigned.

The HSE said it had sought the dissolution of the CRC board and its reconstitution."The HSE has appointed an administrator who will immediately take on the interim responsibility for overseeing the work of the CRC and for leading the introduction of new governance arrangements for CRC and its associated subsidiaries. In this regard, the HSE is also working with Boardmatch Ireland to put in place these new governance arrangements and to appoint new governors."

It added: “The HSE will also be moving quickly to recruit a new CEO through the Public Appointments Service.”

Restoring confidence
The HSE said it was committed "to ensuring that the confidence of the clients and dedicated staff of CRC, together with that of the general public . . . can be fully restored".

The resignations came after several weeks of increasing controversy over payments to senior staff members at the CRC on top of official HSE remuneration. In some cases, payments were topped up using donations provided by the public.

Last month, The Irish Times reported former chief executive of the CRC Paul Kiely was receiving top-up payments of more than €135,000 in addition to a HSE salary of €106,000. Other CRC executives were in receipt of top-ups of more than €30,000.

The Dáil Public Accounts Committee was told this week that Mr Kiely received a lump sum of €200,000 from charitable donations when he retired.

The chairman of the committee, Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness, said that there had been a huge backlash to charitable donations overt the revelations.

Meanwhile, it has emerged senior figures in the St Vincent's Healthcare Group may be called to give evidence after concerns were raised about payments and pension issues. The group comprises St Vincent's University Hospital; an adjacent private hospital in Elm Park; and St Michael's Hospital in Dún Laoghaire.

Central Remedial Clinic: who’s who

The 10-member board of the Central Remedial Clinic, all of whom resigned with immediate effect last night, included people from the political, medical and legal professions. They were:

Jim Nugent: A former board member of the Central Bank and former chair of Cert, the former State training agency for the hotel and tourism industry, Mr Nugent told the Mahon tribunal he had given Bertie Ahern £2,500 as part of a whiparound.

Hamilton Goulding: A son of CRC co-founder Lady Valerie Goulding. T he Companies Registration Office (CRO) lists Mr Goulding as a director of four other companies, three of which are connected with the CRC and which he will now resign from, according to last night's statement announcing the board resignations.

Ailbhe Rice-Jones: She has been a director of the CRC since June 2004, having been a director of the Friends and Supporters of the Central Remedial Clinic since 1999, according to documents filed with the CRO. Ms Rice-Jones is a solicitor.

Martin Walsh: He is a medical consultant who became a director of the CRC in September 1998. Mr Walsh is also listed as director of the Mater Misericordiae and the Children's University Hospitals Ltd as well as the NRH Foundation, according to the CRO.

Hassia Jameson: Born in 1930, Hassia Jameson is first mentioned in CRC annual returns filed with the CRO in 1981 and became a director of the Friends and Supporters of the Central Remedial Clinic in 1991.

David Martin: A director of the CRC since 2006 and a solicitor according to documents filed with the CRO, Mr Martin is also listed as the director of one other company.

Frances Sheppard: Listed as a director of the CRC since August 2013, she is a retired sales and marketing manager with Bank of Ireland, according to CRO documents.

Vincent Brady: A former Fianna Fáil chief whip and minister for defence and a political ally of the late Charles Haughey, Mr Brady was first elected to the Dáil in the Dublin North Central constituency in 1977.

Pat Ryan: Appointed as a director to the CRC in 1999 when he listed his occupation as a company director, Mr Ryan is also listed as the director of a several other companies, including security broking and fund management companies.

Prof Mary Day: Appointed as a director of the CRC in June, Ms Day is the interim chief executive and chair of the executive management committee of the Mater hospital.

Pamela Duncan