Former minister for the marine Frank Fahey has been strongly criticised in a new report for sanctioning funding of more than €5 million for the construction of four marinas without proper Department of Finance guidelines being followed.
Mr Fahey, now a Minister of State, directed that €5.7 million in grant aid be given to marine leisure projects at Cahersiveen and Kenmare in Co Kerry, at Roundstone, Co Galway, and at Rosses Point, Co Sligo, in 2000, before proper evaluation reports were carried out, the report from the Public Accounts Committee published yesterday stated.
However, Mr Fahey told The Irish Times last night that he "absolutely refuted" the report's findings and he stood by his decision to help develop marine tourism along the west coast.
According to the PAC report, the direction given by Mr Fahey to his department for the grant aid was "at variance with the proposed structures and selection processes" for the marine tourism grants scheme.
Virtually no relevant information on the viability or tourism value of the projects was made available at the time the grants were announced in December 2000, according to the report.
Committee chairman Michael Noonan said yesterday that the project of most concern was the Cahersiveen marina which cost an estimated €3.5 million.
He said a 93-berth marina was developed of which 38 berths were for tourists and 55 berths for private lease. In effect the main beneficiaries were private yacht owners who had their berths supplemented by the taxpayer to the tune of about €30,000 each.
One payment of €332,312 was made to the Kenmare project without rigorous checking of the conditions attaching to the approval. A building constructed as part of the project was subsequently demolished due to a contravention of planning approval.
The report said that up to now no money was drawn down for the Roundstone and Rosses Point projects. The Department of the Marine only received a business plan for the Roundstone project in 2004. Last September the applicants asked for grant aid to be reconsidered but no funding has been made available in the 2007 estimates.
The Rosses Point project was scaled back from 47 to 27 berths while the grant assistance offered remained at €1.27 million. However, following various difficulties with the project, the department was informed in September 2006 that the application for funding had been withdrawn.
The report recommends that ministers and accounting officers ensure that the principle underlying the guidelines for the management of capital expenditure projects in the public sector are applied to all capital projects.
In a statement last night, the Department of Communications and Marine said the findings of the report "set out an accurate assessment of the conduct of the four identified projects and as such the findings are acceptable".
However, Mr Fahey said he did not accept the findings and refuted a statement to the PAC during hearings in 2004 on the marina by Department of Communications and Marine secretary general Brendan Tuohy.
He said it was a Government decision in December 2000 that €5.7 million be provided in the budget for the four projects under marine tourism.
He said Cahersiveen was a very successful marina and Rosses Point did not proceed due to the fact that Sligo County Council could not comply with the conditions laid down by the department. Roundstone is now proceeding with 55 per cent grant aid, subject to final approval.