The Comptroller and Auditor General has criticised aspects of the corporate governance, management, planning and control at Bord na gCon in the late 1990s and the early to middle part of this decade.
In a special report, the comptroller found that the broad framework of financial administration at the greyhound board was appropriate during what was a period of great change at the organisation.
He also says his negative findings in relation to procedural matters should not be seen to detract from the many positive achievements realised by the board during the period under review.
But the comptroller found that during the redevelopment of Shelbourne Park between 2000 and 2002, considerable authority was given to a building overseer in the absence of the Managing Director of the two Dublin greyhound tracks due to illness.
The report found that the same building overseer was given a contract to manage security at Shelbourne Park in April 2000, without advertising or a recruitment process.
The contractual relationship with the overseer remains unclear. It also found that during his period in charge, control over the project was not being exercised by either Bord na gCon or its subsidiary, Shelbourne Greyhound Stadium Limited.
The report found that as part of the redevelopment, a generator was bought for €124,704. It subsequently emerged, the comptroller established, that the generator was 20 years old.
A subsequent investigation by PriceWaterhouseCoopers established the tender process had been flawed. The building overseer had instructed the services consultant retained to manage the tender process to add a supplier to the list of those invited to tender, who was later awarded the contract. It subsequently emerged, the reports says, that the building overseer was a director of the company in question.
On establishing this fact, Bord na gCon sought advice from its legal advisors asking if it would be appropriate to pass a file concerning the generator to the DPP. The advice received, the comptroller says, was that it would be a futile exercise, as there was an insufficient case for prosecution.
The report also found that Bord na gCon paid €80,791 to a company for nine glasswashers and eight ice machines between August 2000 and February 2001. Of these, only six of each were received, and it is estimated €19,973 was overpaid. The report also claims that the VAT number of the supplier of the machines had nott been active since June 2000.
Security services at the Dublin greyhound tracks during the period were also examined. It was found that after the termination of the contract of the building overseer in December 2001, the method of paying security personnel was unorthodox. It found, for example, that the company engaged to provide catering services at Shelbourne Park paid €45,258 directly to security personnel between January and May 2002 at the request of the company managing Shelbourne Park.
No contract evidence
There is no evidence of tenders or contracts for the security services provided in the period April 2000 to April 2004. After a tender competition in April 2004, a new security company was appointed, but Bord na gCon could not provide the C&AG with a contract. That company was later let go, and the underbidder was brought in to replace it.
Bord na gCon had a formal authorisation process for invoice payment in place, requiring invoice approval by witnessed by signature. But the C&AG says despite this process being in place, there is no evidence of the signature of the Managing Director on invoices totalling €376,058.
The C&AG also criticises an arrangement set up in 2000, where a Dublin garage provided a car to two managers at the Dublin greyhound tracks. Under the agreement, the two managers were required to maintain the cars and pay the running costs.
It later emerged that the General Manager of Shelbourne Greyhound Stadium had claimed and was paid full mileage expenses for work journeys made in his car, during the period he had it.
In 2002, the report says the CEO of Bord na gCon became aware of the arrangement and instructed the General Manager of Shelbourne Park to terminate the agreements with the garage. This did not happen, the report says.
When the board became aware in 2005 that the arrangement had continued in defiance of the CEO's request, the arrangement came to an end. A payment was then made to the Revenue Commissioners to cover the obligation in 2004 and 2005 for the employer to pay Benefit-in-Kind. €11,333 was recouped from the General Manager of Shelbourne Park, including over €5,000 for the expenses he had claimed.
The investigation found that because of a postponement and cancellation of a refurbishment project for Shelbourne Park proposed by the CEO of Bord na gCon between 2005 and 2006, €158,560 was paid out for services for which no value was received.
It also found an annex in Bord na gCon headquarters in Limerick was rented in 1996 to a solicitor who later became the CEO's daughter in law. The C&AG found that the length of the term of a subsequent revised lease granted to the tenant, gave her extra rights.
When the board sought to terminate the lease in 1999 so that a development could take place, a settlement of €95,230 had to be paid to the tenant to the rescind the lease. The proposed development did not go ahead, and a planning application was never submitted.
