Committee Reports > List of Committees > Dáil > 1936 > Committee of Public Accounts > Interim and Final Report - Appropriation Accounts 1934 - 1935

FINAL REPORT.

Office of Public Works.

1. The attention of the Committee was directed to the fact that general balances on appropriation grants or Departmental funds had been used temporarily to finance services which had not, at the time, been expressly provided for by the Oireachtas. As the question involved has been the subject of discussion between the Department of Finance and the Office of Public Works, the Committee feels that it is desirable that the principles which should govern procedure in such cases should be recorded and should be universally applied:

(1) Money which is appropriated by the Oireachtas to a specific Vote or Fund must not be diverted even temporarily to services outside the ambit of that Vote or Fund, since such a procedure cuts at the root of all control of expenditure held by the Oireachtas.

(2) When expenditure becomes necessary on a service not covered by a Vote, immediate steps should be taken to obtain the authority of the Oireachtas.

(3) If it is absolutely impossible to obtain Oireachtas authority before expenditure is incurred for urgent purposes, the authority of the Minister for Finance should be obtained for an advance from the Contingency Fund pending the presentation of an Estimate.

Public Works and Buildings.

Appendix III.

2. The Committee has considered a special report in this case submitted by the Accounting Officer. The Department of Finance gave authority in the first instance for the erection, on a site purchased for £80, of a new building of the standard type of Barrack for the permanent accommodation of the local Gárda force. A wooden structure was erected by the Commissioners of Public Works at a cost of £1,355 16s. 7d., and a further sum of £356 0s. 9d. was expended during the 5½ years the building was occupied. The property, being no longer required for the Gárda, was ultimately sold for £131.

In the case under review it may not have been possible to avoid the considerable loss to public funds involved in the sale. The Committee feels it necessary, however, to urge that all possible steps should be taken, before undertaking large expenditure on any sites or buildings, to ensure that the public interests are adequately safeguarded and the risk of loss minimised.

While the Committee does not wish to criticise the various items of expenditure connected with this building, it cannot but feel that the expenditure was out of proportion to the value of the structure.

3. The Committee desires to advert to the views expressed in paragraph 11 of its Report dated 1st August, 1933, that the Commissioners of Public Works should seek the prior sanction of the Department of Finance before embarking on expenditure on premises held on short leases.

In his Minute of 31st July, 1934, the Minister for Finance expressed willingness to limit the discretion of the Commissioners to expenditure of £100 in the case of premises, where the lease has not more than five years to run. The Committee feels that the restrictions set out in the Minute are adequate, and should be observed in the future.

Stationery Office.

4. The Committee notes from the Report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General that the Minister for Finance has directed the preparation of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for the Government Publications Sale Office, and that the Accounts to 31st March, 1933, had been submitted for audit. The Accounting Officer has given an assurance that within the next twelve months the accounts will be brought up to date. The Committee feels it is desirable that accounts of this nature should not be allowed to fall into arrear, and trusts that steps may be taken to ensure the regular submission of the Sales Office Accounts in the future.

External Affairs.

5. The Committee notes that it is hoped to introduce legislation this year to regularise the collection of fees for passports and for consular services.

Technical Instruction.

6. The attention of the Committee has been drawn to a grant paid to an industrial concern in respect of the training of apprentices. The grant represented a proportion of the wages paid to a forewoman who supervised the apprentices in the working of the factory processes. The Committee sees some objection in principle to a grant of this kind which is, in effect, a subsidy to a particular concern. It notes that the covering sanction of the Department of Finance has been obtained for the payment in question, but would suggest the desirability of making specific provision in the Estimate if it is proposed to make payments on these lines in the future.

Primary Education.

7. The Committee has had again under consideration the case of the teacher, referred to in paragraph 3 of its Report dated 12th March, 1936, to whom payments of salary were illegally made. It notes the opinion given by the Attorney-General as to the difficulty in validating these payments by legislation, and agrees with the view expressed by the Minister for Finance in his Minute, dated 27th June, 1936, that a Supplementary Vote should be taken to cover the amounts illegally paid.

8. Attention has been drawn to certain cases of irregularities in the records of National Schools, and of irregular transfers of pupils, which resulted in overpayments of salaries to teachers. The Committee notes the difficulty in dealing with some of these cases under existing regulations, and that a revision of the rules is under consideration. It will be glad to be informed of the action taken in due course.

Land Commission.

9. In examining the action of the Land Commission in selling certain holdings and parcels of land at a reduction of 50 or 55 per cent. of the nominal purchase price, the view was expressed that, although the sanction of the Department of Finance had been obtained, the Land Commission had no statutory authority for so doing. In view of the evidence of the Accounting Officer, it would appear that, in equity, the reductions are justified, but the Committee feels that, as the legality of such reductions is in doubt, the desirability of introducing legislation to clarify the position should be considered.

10. Reference was made to the expenditure of money by way of Free Grant for the Improvement of Estates when the lands to be improved have been vested in purchasers. It appears to the Committee that, in cases where the expenditure is wholly directed to the improvement of vested lands, the Land Commission recognised the need for seeking the authority of the Department of Finance, but it is in regard to border-line cases, such as, for example, where the expenditure benefits vested as well as non-vested lands, that a difference of opinion arises.

It would appear that, under Section 22, sub-section 3, of the Land Act, 1927, the authority of the Department of Finance should be sought when the expenditure in question improves vested as well as unvested lands. The Land Commission, however, consider that if the object of the expenditure is the improvement of non-vested lands, the fact that vested lands incidentally benefit from such expenditure does not of itself bring the expenditure within the provisions of the above section so as to require the authority of the Department of Finance for the expenditure.

The Committee considers that the question at issue should form the subject of discussion between the Department of Finance and the Land Commission with a view to arriving at an agreed basis.

Gaeltacht Services.

11. Attention has been called to the fact that payment had been made to the Manageress of an Industrial Centre for a considerable period after work at the Centre had ceased, and the view expressed that the payment of full remuneration as a Manageress was not justified by the nature of the duties performed. The Accounting Officer confirmed that from September 30th, 1934, to the date of the termination of her services, the duties performed by the officer in question were purely those of a caretaker, but submitted that in all the circumstances the Department had no option but to continue her services. The Minister for Finance being of the opinion that the payment was not justified, has refused his covering sanction. As the matter now stands, the expenditure cannot be admitted as a proper charge to the Vote. The Committee has considered the matter and, while recognising the difficulties of the Department, feels that the position is one that should not have arisen, and that steps should have been taken, after this officer’s managerial duties ceased, to terminate her employment as Manageress, and, if necessary, to have her appointed as Caretaker.

Army.

12. In its Report for the year 1932-33, the Committee had occasion to advert to the delay in applying a new regulation relating to the additional pay of members of the Forces engaged as soldier-tradesmen in view of the anomalous position, to which attention had been drawn. The Committee notes that the question of additional pay has been the subject of departmental discussion since 1931, and having regard to the present unsatisfactory position, it hopes that it will be found possible to issue a comprehensive regulation in the near future.

13. In the examination of the Army Appropriation Account, reference was made to the appointment of a civilian instructor to give instruction to boy mechanics at the Air Corps headquarters. It is stated that the instructor was appointed as from 7th January, 1935, but that the boy mechanics were not recruited until 1936. The Accounting Officer stated in his evidence that the instructor was fully engaged in the interval preparing programmes of training, deciding on the machinery to be installed in the school, and on other matters. The Committee feels that the arrangements for establishing the school had not been sufficiently advanced in January, 1935, to justify the appointment, but in view of the statement of the Accounting Officer that all the facts have been reported to the Department of Finance, it refrains from further comment.

14. The charges arising from the use of Army mechanical transport, in conveying volunteers to and from their training centres, have come under the notice of the Committee, and the view was expressed that the use of official transport on this service is contrary to regulation. The Committee appreciates the difficulties of the Department in this matter, and suggests that the use of Army transport might be regularised by amending the regulation. It is of opinion, however, that in the interests of economy the strictest control and supervision of this service are desirable. Regarding the incidence of charge, the Committee is in agreement with the view that the full cost of conveying Volunteers to and from training, whether by Army transport or public conveyance, should be shown against the provision made for it under the appropriate sub-head of the Army Vote.

15. The notice of the Committee has been drawn to the unsatisfactory conditions regarding control of stores, and the procedure followed in dealing with those stores, at the Air Corps headquarters. It appears that no complete stocktaking was undertaken between 1930 and 1935, and that the officers in charge exercised powers relating to the disposal and replacement of stores which are within the competence of the Accounting Officer or the Department of Finance alone. Various aspects of the accounting system have been the subject of discussion before this Committee on previous occasions, and it is concerned to observe that at this late date the lack of financial control still persists. The Committee is informed that regulations are now being prepared which will cover all the matters complained of, but it fails to understand why regulations adequate for the proper safeguarding of public stores were not previously used. The neglect to carry out periodical stocktaking is not, apparently, confined to the Air Corps headquarters. The same complaint is made regarding other central stores in which large stocks are held. The Committee views with disfavour the apparent acquiescence of the Department in this condition of affairs; it hopes that the promised regulations will be put in force without delay, and it desires to be informed in due course of the progress made towards the institution of effective control.

16. Reference is made to a contract for the purchase of two tanks at an approximate cost of £10,500. Under the terms of the contract, two-thirds of this sum was paid to the contracting firm in May, 1934, and delivery of the tanks was to be effected not later than 1st February, 1935. In fact, one of the tanks was not delivered until November, 1935, and the Committee has not been informed whether the other has yet been received. The Accounting Officer stated in his evidence that the non-observance of that clause of the contract relating to delivery was due to circumstances outside the control of the contracting parties. The Committee is of opinion, however, that contracts of this kind, which entail the disbursement of public moneys so long before delivery, are not in the best interests of the public service, and can be justified only by very exceptional circumstances.

17. With regard to the administration of the Volunteer Force, the attention of the Committee has been drawn to the practice of providing persons who act as Secretaries to Sluagh Committees with imprests to defray incidental expenses, and the difficulty of vouching the charges to public funds. The Accounting Officer explained that the practice was due to the difficulties encountered in the initial stages of recruiting and organising the force. The Committee, while appreciating the difficulties of the Department in the circumstances stated, views with disfavour the issue of imprests out of public moneys to persons outside the public service.

Property Losses Compensation.

18. In this case the Minister, by a payment of £400, free of any conditions, compromised for an outstanding claim of £800 on foot of an award made by the Compensation (Ireland) Commission, to which was attached a rebuilding condition.

The Committee feels that only in very exceptional circumstances should the condition attaching to an award be varied, and, in the present case, is not satisfied that the payment of £400, free of any condition, was justified.

19. In the case under discussion, a sum of £150 was paid to a trader as compensation under the Damage to Property (Compensation) Act, 1923, for shop goods damaged and stolen in the months following the Truce. It appears that the Department of Finance was advised by the Attorney-General that the claims made were not within the provisions of the Act. Payment was at first refused, but the Minister finally decided to waive the legal technicality and make payment on the equities of the case. The Committee is of opinion that, in the circumstances, and to remove any doubt as to the correctness of charging the Vote, the more correct procedure would have been to submit a Supplementary Estimate to the Dáil to meet the expenditure.

Agriculture.

20. The attention of the Committee was called to certain discrepancies disclosed in the course of the examination of vouchers furnished in connection with the free supply of beef under Part IX of the Slaughter of Cattle and Sheep Act, 1934. It appears that Section 47 of the Act provides that a beef voucher may be presented by a recipient, either personally or by his wife, child or other dependant, and the Beef Voucher Regulations, 1934 (S.R.O. 1934, No. 351) prescribe that the voucher must be signed by the person receiving the beef. In a large proportion of the vouchers examined, the receipt was given by a person other than the recipient. It appears desirable that when a voucher is signed by an authorised person other than the recipient, the degree of relationship or dependence should be indicated, and the Committee suggests the advisability of providing in the regulations for the insertion of this further information on the beef vouchers.

(Signed) D. McMENAMIN,

Acting Chairman.

8th July, 1936.