Committee Reports > List of Committees > Dáil > 1951 > Committee of Public Accounts > Report - Appropriation Accounts 1948 - 1949

REPORT.

PART I—GENERAL OBSERVATIONS.

Minute of Minister for Finance dated 24th April, 1951.

CIRCUIT COURT.

1. The Committee is glad to learn that the Minister for Finance concurs in the views expressed in its report on the accounts for 1946—47. It notes that, in the light of all the circumstances surrounding the irregular payments to the stenographer, the Minister has decided to waive recovery and to bring the matter to a conclusion by a note to be appended to the appropriation account for 1950—51.

CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION.

2. The Committee welcomes the Minister’s decision that the amount of the receipts from fee stamps should, in future, be recorded in a note to the appropriation account of each vote under which they arise.

TRANSPORT AND METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES.

3. With reference to the passenger hostel at Foynes the Committee notes that in the period 5th November, 1946, to 10th December, 1947, during which the hostel was operated the receipts amounted to £11,753 and the expenses to £13,005, and that the building and part of the furniture and fittings were subsequently sold for £8,462 14s. 6d. It was stated in the Comptroller and Auditor-General’s report on the accounts for 1946—47 that the expenditure on the construction and equipment of the hostel had amounted to approximately £53,000, and it would appear, therefore, that the venture has resulted in a very considerable net charge on public funds.

EXTERNAL AFFAIRS.

4. With regard to the repayable advances made to certain Irish Nationals who were pensioners of the Shanghai Municipal Council the Committee notes that payment of pensions has not been resumed and that efforts to secure compensation for the pensioners from other sources have failed.

PRIMARY EDUCATION

5. The Committee is pleased to learn that the Minister is in agreement with the view that teachers who are paid salary during the closing of a school for a prolonged period for repairs should, where possible, be employed in another school, and that he will press for the employment in other schools of the teachers concerned when similar circumstances arise in the future.

ARMY.

6. The Committee is glad to note that the issue in the near future of a comprehensive regulation to govern the issue and control of uniform clothing to members of An Fórsa Cosanta Aitiúil is anticipated.

ARMY PENSIONS.

7. With reference to applications for reviews of pensions under the Military Service Pensions Acts the Committee is pleased to learn that the Minister agrees with its views and that its wishes will be complied with in relation to petitions for re-examination made under the Military Service Pensions (Amendment) Act, 1949.

PART II—PARTICULAR ACCOUNTS.

Public Works and Buildings.

Qns. 121-130. 256-282.

8. Premises which had been leased by Aerlinte Eireann Teoranta for a term of 21 years from 1947 at a yearly rent of $20,000 plus taxes (approximately £2,375) were taken over to provide offices for the Consul General in New York and, in consideration of the transfer of the lease, a sum of £20,2827s. 0d., was paid to the company in recoupment of expenditure incurred on the renovation of the premises. Further expenditure amounting to £4,678 was incurred on alterations, furniture, removal expenses, etc. Part of the premises had been sublet at a rent of £1,000 per annum and another portion was available for subletting, but efforts to obtain tenants for the surplus accommodation were unsuccessful. It was stated, however, that as the greater part of the building would be required by the Department of External Affairs the accommodation ultimately available for letting would be small.

The Committee had under consideration the circumstances in which these premises were acquired, and thought it desirable to hear evidence from the Accounting Officer for the vote for External Affairs in addition to examining the Accounting Officer for the vote for Public Works and Buildings. It learned that the arrangement in connection with the purchase was arrived at by the Department of External Affairs with the consent of the Department of Finance and that the premises were not inspected by technical officers of the Commissioners of Public Works, nor were the Commissioners consulted prior to receiving instructions from the Department of External Affairs to purchase the premises. The Committee was informed that normally the Commissioners are afforded an opportunity of expressing their views before premises are acquired for State purposes, but that in this case they were confronted with a fait accompli.

The Committee finds it difficult to envisage circumstances which would justify recoupment to the vendor of all the expenditure incurred in making premises suitable for use as air company offices when such premises were being acquired for a Consulate General. It is not aware whether Aerlinte Eireann, Teoranta, had received other offers for its interest in the premises or whether a search had been made for alternative accommodation for the Consulate General. In these circumstances it is unable to reach a definite conclusion on the merits, of the transaction. The Committee is concerned to observe, however, that the procedure followed in connection with the purchase did not afford to the Accounting Officer of the vote for Public Works and Buildings the normal opportunity of exercising his authority in the field of expenditure for which he is accountable.

DEFENCE.

9. Expenditure amounting to £2,200 was sanctioned for the purchase of one mile of light railway track, with bogies and locomotive, for use in connection with certain works which were being carried out at a military aerodrome. The Committee was informed that it had been intended that the equipment would be operated by personnel of the construction corps but that the strength of the corps fell off very considerably and it was eventually disbanded. It appears that owing to lack of the necessary labour it was not possible to use the equipment for the purpose for which it had been purchased. In view of the continuous downward trend of the strength of the construction corps the Committee finds it difficult to understand why the position regarding available labour could not have been assessed before the order was placed for the equipment. It notes, however, that use has been found for the equipment on artillery and rifle ranges.

10. Arising out of a requisition for the supply of 18,000 greatcoats which was issued by the Department of Defence to the Department of Posts and Telegraphs in July, 1947, a contract for 24,000 yards of serge for lining in accordance with the then existing specification was placed by the latter Department in September, 1947. It appears that the adoption of a new pattern greatcoat had been under consideration for some time and, when finally approved in December, 1947, the revised specification provided for a lighter cotton lining costing much less than the serge. Efforts which were made to cancel the contract proved unsuccessful as the serge was in process of production but arrangements were made with the contractor by which the order was closed on delivery of 16,703 yards.

The Accounting Officer stated that some of the serge supplied has been set aside to provide uniforms for An Forsa Cosanta Aitiúil and that the balance was being used for lining greatcoats as it could serve no other purpose. The Committee is concerned to note that considerable additional expenditure was thus incurred on the production of greatcoats to a specification which had been superseded. It feels that an element of loss has arisen in this case which might have been avoided by a greater measure of co-ordination in connection with the arrangements for the designing of the garments and the purchasing of the materials.

AVIATION AND METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES.

11. The attention of the Committee was drawn to the absence of inventories of equipment purchased from public funds and supplied to Aer Rianta, Teoranta, in connection with the management of Dublin Airport, although specific provision was made in the agreement between the Minister for Industry and Commerce and the Company for the maintenance of such records. In view of the importance of maintaining an adequate record of equipment, etc., purchased from public funds and issued for the use of the Company it is unable to understand why this position was allowed to persist over a number of years. It is informed that a comprehensive stocktaking has been carried out and that the work of reconciling the stocktaking returns with the records of purchases is proceeding and it trusts that the matter will be brought to a conclusion at an early date.

AGRICULTURE.

12. The Committee had under discussion the expenditure and receipts in connection with compulsory tillage. The relevant Emergency Powers Orders, which covered operations in the seasons 1940 to 1948 inclusive, required the occupiers of arable lands to till a specified proportion of their holdings, and the Minister for Agriculture was empowered to enter on and take possession of those holdings whose occupiers failed to comply with the provisions of the Orders, and to cultivate such holdings or make lettings. The Orders also laid down that receipts from the sale of crops and from lettings might be applied in or towards defraying the expenses incurred by the Minister for Agriculture, paying debts due to a State authority by the occupiers of entered holdings, or paying rates due to a local authority by such occupiers. The Committee is aware that it was not possible for the Department ultimately to make a profit in connection with the enforcement of the Orders as in the case of each holding entered any surplus remaining after the Minister’s expenses and the claims of other State departments and local authorities had been met, was paid over to the occupier of the holding, while any loss incurred was met from voted moneys. In a previous report the Committee expressed the hope that, in the circumstances indicated, every effort would be made to keep losses at a minimum, and it notes that the net losses incurred over the period of nine years during which the compulsory tillage orders were in force did not exceed £12,313.

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE SUBSIDIES.

13. In the year 1947—48 the Butter Marketing Committee by arrangement with the Department purchased 16,427 cwts. of non-creamery butter which was graded as suitable for household use, and was put into cold storage. It was anticipated that the butter would pass into consumption quickly, but for various reasons a quantity of 2,138 cwts. remained in cold store and, having become unfit for domestic use, was sold for manufacturing purposes. The resulting loss which was recouped to the Butter Marketing Committee from the Agricultural Subsidies Vote amounted to £7,054, exclusive of subsidy. The Committee recognises that this loss was attributable, in part, to unforeseen fluctuations in supply and demand but in view of the danger of deterioration of this butter during a prolonged period in cold store it finds it difficult to understand why adequate steps were not taken to dispose of it before deterioration set in. It trusts that should the necessity for making any similar arrangements again arise precautions will be taken to prevent a recurrence of loss of this nature.

FISHERIES.

14. The Committee notes that repayments of the fishery loans made prior to the setting up of the Sea Fisheries Association in 1930, have in recent years been negligible and that the outstanding balance referred to by the Comptroller and Auditor General in his annual report remained at approximately £20,000. It appears to the Committee that this asset is to a large extent fictitious, and that the position regarding the outstanding loans is ripe for review.

NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE.

15. Section 17 (2) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1947, provided that sums due from voted moneys to the National Health Insurance Fund in respect of any financial year should be paid to the fund “during that financial year.” It was clearly not practicable to determine the precise liability to the Fund before the expiration of the financial year and the Comptroller and Auditor-General drew attention to a payment from the vote for 1948—49 of a balance of £4,689 due in respect of the previous year. The Committee is glad to be informed that the administrative difficulty has now been removed by Section 27 of the Social Welfare Act, 1950, under which Section 17 (2) of the 1947 Act has been amended, with retrospective effect, by the deletion of the words “during that financial year.”

16. During the period from 17th January, 1948, to 7th March, 1948, Cumann an Árachais Náisiúnta ar Shláinte was unable owing to a labour dispute to make payments of benefits under the National Health Insurance Acts. An Order was made entitled the Social Welfare (Substitutive Allowances) Order, 1948 (Statutory Instrument No. 8 of 1948) which authorised public assistance authorities to pay allowances in lieu and provided that their disbursements would be subsequently recouped to them from voted moneys when the amounts had been certified by the Minister for Social Welfare. In his reports on the accounts for the years 1947—48 and 1948—49, the Comptroller and Auditor-General drew attention to the fact that the payments charged to the vote in each of these years were made on a provisional basis subject to adjustment where necessary. The Committee notes that the Minister has now given certificates covering the amounts expended by twenty-six of the public assistance authorities and trusts that it will be found possible to furnish certificates in the remaining six cases in the near future.

(Signed) W. A. W. SHELDON.

Chairman.

18th July, 1951.