Vol. 562 No. 1
175 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Finance his views on the value for money report carried out by the Comptroller and Auditor General on the building maintenance service of the Office of Public Works; the steps being taken to address the serious deficiencies identified in the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5356/03]
The Commissioners of Public Works are examining the findings of the Comptroller and Auditor General's report on the building maintenance service of the Office of Public Works. The main issues of concern highlighted in the report had previously been identified by the commissioners themselves and measures to address them had and are being implemented. As acknowledged in the Comptroller and Auditor General's report, the fact that the building maintenance service incurred a trading loss on its operations does not mean that taxpayers incurred a loss of that amount. All of the building maintenance services charged clients are public sector bodies, so the trading losses represent, in the first instance, a failure to charge other central government agencies the full cost of work carried out. The charge out rates has recently been revised. The Deputy will be pleased to know that the building maintenance service will return a notional profit for 2002.
