Deloitte & Touche, one of the top four accountancy firms in the State, has been "censured" by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI).

The work concerned covered a number of years up to 1997 and so included the period after Mr Ben Dunne left the company in 1993 following a dispute with other members of the Dunne family.

It was also criticised for work it conducted for Celtic Helicopters, the firm founded and run by Mr Ciarán Haughey, son of former Taoiseach Mr Charles Haughey.

The company was censured for its work with Celtic Helicopters and "reprimanded" for its work with Dunnes Stores, with the latter being a less negative finding than the former.

The Blayney Committee, having conducted inquiries arising out of the McCracken (Dunnes Payments) Tribunal, made adverse findings in relation to two matters - the objectivity of Deloitte & Touche in carrying out audits of the holding company of the Dunnes Stores group and certain of its subsidiaries over a period of several years up to 1997 and; the carrying out of the audit of Celtic Helicopters for the year ended March 31st, 1992, in the course of which Deloitte & Touche did not seek independent evidence of a material transaction and relied instead on the representations of the company's directors.

The findings were appealed by Deloitte & Touche.

In its findings, the ICAI committee said: "At the hearings of the appeal, lawyers appointed to present the case against Deloitte & Touche stated to the Appeal Committee that the findings under appeal did not and could not amount to professional misconduct."

"The Appeal Committee confirmed that no issue of professional misconduct fell to be determined by it."

Following the hearing, the Appeal Committee made findings and orders adverse to Deloitte & Touche.

It affirmed the substance of the findings and order of the Blayney Committee.

"The Appeal Committee found that, because two of the partners of Deloitte & Touche attended virtually every board meeting of the holding company of the Dunnes Stores group for a period of several years up to 1997, during which period the firm acted as auditor to that company and to certain of its subsidiaries, Deloitte & Touche could not be seen to be independent in carrying out those audits and, accordingly, its objectivity could not be assured."

The Appeal Committee also affirmed the findings and order of the Blayney Committee in respect of Celtic Helicopters.

These related to the audit of that company for the year ended March 31st, 1992.

The committee found that "because Deloitte & Touche, in carrying out the audit of Celtic Helicopters for the year ended March 31st, 1992, did not seek independent evidence of the purported settlement of an insurance claim for £100,000 \ where such evidence should have been available, and relied instead on the representations of the directors of Celtic Helicopters, Deloitte & Touche did not observe the appropriate auditing standard and guidelines."

The order censuring Deloitte & Touche was affirmed.

There was a finding in relation to the firm's costs against Deloitte & Touche. The costs are estimated to be in the region of €1.2 million.

In a statement released yesterday, Deloitte & Touche said it noted the Appeal Committee's findings and the acknowledgement that the conduct reviewed "could not amount to professional misconduct".

The accountancy firm noted "the technical nature of the findings, which related to private companies, and that the substance of the work carried out by Deloitte & Touche was not called into question".