Many important questions remain to be answered in connection with the granting of a contract by Campus and Stadium Ireland Development (CSID) for building and running a €62 million national aquatic centre at Abbotstown in Dublin. The winning bid was submitted by Waterworld UK, a dormant shelf company with assets of four pounds sterling, in association with Rohcon.
The job of running the complex will go to Dublin Waterworld, a company with Tralee connections. The seriousness of the situation was emphasised when the Coalition Government directed CSID to hold an emergency board meeting last night to review a number of matters and to report to the Minister for Tourism and Sport, Dr McDaid. A full report will be made to Cabinet within ten days.
Reports by Arthur Beesley in this newspaper drew attention to a failure of communications within Government and reopened divisions over the entire project for which CSID has responsibility in Dublin West. The Tánaiste and leader of the Progressive Democrats, Ms Harney, was particularly critical. The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and the Minister for Tourism and Sport also sought to distance themselves from the matter while the opposition parties seized upon it as valuable pre-election ammunition.
The political climate in which the review is being held is particularly unfortunate for the CSID board and for the Government. The work of judicial tribunals over the past number of years, in plumbing the unacceptable relationships between business and politicians, has generated an active suspicion in the public mind that if matters are not absolutely transparent, murky work must be afoot. Because of that, the issues at the heart of this controversy must be resolved quickly.
CSID issued a number of statements defending its position and insisting that all appropriate processes were followed in the selection of the consortium involving Waterworld UK. Details had been discussed in great detail and with full transparency. Notwithstanding that Waterworld UK was a dormant company, it went on, it was entitled, under EU procurement rules, to proceed as part of the bid once it satisfied CSID that it could call on the necessary financial resources. In that respect, Anglo Irish Bank had provided a guarantee of €3 million to Waterworld UK in relation to the project.
Neither the Minister concerned, nor the Government, appeared impressed by these protestations and assurances. After all, they had not been told that Waterworld UL was a dormant, shelf company. The manner in which the deal was structured, with Waterworld UK retaining a tiny, four per cent, stake in the company - Dublin Waterworld - that will operate the national aquatic centre also raised questions. The expertise for running what will be the biggest aquatic centre in Europe will effectively come from Tralee Aquadrome, a company with a gross turnover smaller than the annual profits expected from administering the new centre. Dr McDaid said the contract awarded for building the centre was some €15 million lower than its nearest rival. That is all to the good. But the other aspects must be clarified.