Fás Board Resign

Following months of investigations, external pressure and outside scrutiny, the board at the state training agency have tendered resignations.

Legislation to restructure the disastrous Fás at "the highest level" is also expected to be ready in four weeks.

Labour Social Affairs spokeswoman Róisín Shortall said yesterday that the position of the board members had been untenable since the extent of the waste of taxpayers’ money in the agency first became public.

Outrage against the authority first emerged after the body revealed it was running at an expense of nearly €1 billion per annum.

Details also emerged last week of an investigation into systematic double-charging, where it is understood the owner of advertising company involved in running several firms, regularly billed the training agency more than once for the same work.

Garda sources have also revealed that an Fás employee is also under investigation in relation to the mysterious payout of €622,000 over a period of years for goods and services never supplied.

Fine Gael's Leo Varadkar said that the clear out of the board should also include senior executives "who allowed massive amounts of taxpayers’ money to be wasted on first class flights, expensive hotels and pointless advertising campaigns".

“Tánaiste Mary Coughlan is still refusing to take the essential step and dismiss the FÁS board. Even worse, Taoiseach Brian Cowen will not support calls for the board to be replaced, probably because this might set a precedent for his own Government," he said.

Mr Varadkar added: “I believe there should be a thorough clean-out of senior FÁS executives who allowed the culture of greed and waste to flourish for so long.

"That is why the forthcoming legislation to restructure the agency must include a provision to replace senior managers who allowed this culture to thrive, as well as the Board."

(DW/BMcC)