Parking meter 'irregularities' could see Council €1m out of pocket
Alleged “irregularities” in relation to Pay and Display parking meters and other local authority property could have left Galway City Council out of pocket by up to €1 million, it has been claimed in the Seanad.
Senator Trevor Ó Clochartaigh said there may be other serious issues coming to light with regards to misappropriation of City Council property.
It is understood the new allegation relates to items which had been held in storage facilities by the local authority.
He raised the issue in the Seanad yesterday (Wednesday) on foot of a report in our sister newspaper, the Galway City Tribune, on January 27 that a council employee had been suspended pending an investigation into allegations of “irregularities” with the parking meters.
Over the past five weeks, the Council has refused to answer any questions from this newspaper in relation to the allegations, referring back to its initial statement to us: “Galway City Council is currently examining an alleged breach of procedure. A member of staff is on leave pending this examination. The Council is constrained from any further comment while this process is ongoing.”
Referring to the Tribune story, Senator Ó Clochartaigh said an investigation is being carried out into alleged irregularities involving the Pay and Display meters and a member of staff in on leave pending the probe.
He said the Council executive had come under fire from councillors for releasing the statement (in response to this newspaper’s queries) without first informing them that an investigation had been launched and a worker suspended.
The senator added: “I’m also being told by people quite close to City Council that there may be other serious issues coming to light of misappropriation of property belonging to Galway City Council which has been happening on an ongoing basis. I’m just wondering if the Minister is aware this being investigated and if so, by whom is it being investigated and are they being told about what’s going on?
“I am led to believe that all in all, Galway City Council could be out of pocket by as much as €800,000 or €1m as a result of a number of these irregularities. Who is ultimately paying the price?” asked Senator Ó Clochartaigh.
For more on this story, see this week's Tribune.