Financial mismanagement of local authority housing loans by Kilkenny County Council from the late 1980s to 1994 led to a deficit of €10 million and a subsequent impact on the quality of services the Council could provide.
This is one of the findings of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in its fourth interim report on the 2002 Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General.
Funding for local authority housing loans is provided by the Housing Finance Agency and is not micro-managed by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
During the period in question Kilkenny County Council used the funds from redeemed loans to finance its current operations.
This led to an imbalance in its housing loan book of €10 million. A similar problem in Donegal County Council led to a €6 million imbalance.
The Committee has advised that the Department of the Environment "take advantage of the new accounting systems in local authorities to improve its oversight of local finances".
PAC also looked at the introduction of a computerised forestry inventory and planning system at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources.
The total cost of the system was in the region of €15 million - 300 per cent more than the original estimated cost.
Of the five components of the system only one had been delivered at the time of the Comptroller and Auditor General's audit and two were cancelled.
PAC found that there had been a failure to tender competitively for the system and that in future "formal project management should be applied to the development of all substantial IT systems."
The Committee also examined the Competition Authority Accounts for 2002 and 2003 including why it has failed to uncover any major cartel in the service sector.
As a consequence it has recommended that that Authority "should undertake a programme of work that reflects public concerns about the extent of price-fixing in the economy."
The PAC report, published today, covers activities at the Departments of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources; Enterprise, Trade and Employment; Environment, Heritage and Local Government; Office of Public Works and Environmental Protection Agency.