Gormley may order docklands inquiry

A FRESH investigation into the activities of the Dublin Docklands Development Authority is set to be ordered by Minister for the Environment John Gormley.

Mr Gormley yesterday said he was giving strong consideration to widening the remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to allow them to investigate the authority, with the possibility of a public inquiry.

He said he would make a formal announcement shortly when he publishes two reports on the planning activities and corporate governance at the organisation.

Drafts of the two reports were published earlier this year by Fine Gael without Mr Gormley’s consent. The reports concluded there were doubts over the legality of some dockland developments because they involved inappropriate planning. They also found that major decisions were taken by the authority’s executives without reference to the board.

Mr Gormley said he was aware of Opposition calls to investigate the issues raised in the reports, but he said he had to discuss this with the Cabinet before he made an official announcement.

“I am giving real consideration to widening the remit of the PAC and the CAG so they can look in greater detail at these issues and if necessary do so in public as well.”

Referring to reports yesterday of the disappearance of files relating to the €426.8 million deal for the purchase of the Irish Glass Bottle site, Mr Gormley said it showed up the “serious malpractices” which had taken place in the organisation.

The authority has been unable to find minutes of some finance committee meetings held before and after the October 2006 deal for the Irish Glass Bottle site. Mr Gormley said he was unaware of the issue until yesterday morning.

“The very fact that files went missing at the time of a crucial economic decision is of huge concern and it shows that there were serious malpractices taking place at that time.”

A new regime had been put in place at the authority since the deal had been agreed, Mr Gormley said, and its planning and corporate practices were now “world class”. However, he said because of the serious financial consequences for the State of the glass bottle deal the loss of these documents was a real concern.

He said he had received no formal report from the authority in relation to the missing records, but intended to speak to its chairwoman, Prof Niamh Brennan, on this issue shortly.

In a statement yesterday, the authority said at the time in question not all meetings were properly and clearly minuted. Prof Brennan would be “fully briefing the Minister at the earliest opportunity”, it said.