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A further €20,000 has been spent on the National Children’s Science Centre since February despite “no Department” wanting to proceed with the project, according to Fianna Fáil TD Paul McAuliffe.
Speaking during a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday morning, the Dublin North West TD urged the Office of Public Works (OPW) to provide a solution to the long-running difficulties surrounding the project, which has been the subject of scrutiny in recent years.
McAuliffe, who serves as vice-chair of the PAC, said committee members were left frustrated following a meeting last week with representatives from the OPW and the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation.
He said a further €20,000 had been spent on the project since the OPW last appeared before the PAC in February, despite ongoing uncertainty about whether the science centre will ever be built.
Calling for action, McAuliffe argued that the committee should intervene to prevent further expenditure without a clear plan for the project’s future.
“Since February, when the OPW were last before the PAC, they have spent another €20k on a building that no Department wants to build,” he said.
“This Committee needs to press a button and say stop, and the OPW needs to present a solution to this issue.”
“We can’t have a situation where we get to the end of this year having spent thousands on technical documents for a building that will never be built.”
McAuliffe also said that discussions with officials had failed to provide clarity on how the State intends to proceed with the project.
“We had the OPW and DPER in the room last week,” he said.
“And we don’t have any idea of where strategically the State is going to proceed on this [project].”
The Fianna Fáil TD also pointed to concerns surrounding how the project was originally advanced, saying questions remained about the approval process and commitments entered into by State bodies.
Discussing those issues, McAuliffe said there appeared to be obligations on the OPW arising from arrangements made before the necessary sanction had been secured.
“There appears to be an obligation on the OPW as they have a separate vote from DPER to the Dáil,” he said.
“At the end of the day, a body entered a legal commitment for a large-scale project without having the sanction of DPER. As the C&AG acknowledged – this a problem of their own making.”
McAuliffe also referenced the condition of the site itself, which he said has remained largely unused for many years.
“Having visited the premises, I have seen the dereliction at the building that has sat empty for 20 years with no significant purpose for it since UCD moved out in 2007,” he said.
The National Children’s Science Centre project has been the subject of repeated examination by the Public Accounts Committee and the Comptroller and Auditor General.
The proposed centre was intended to create a national science and discovery facility for children, but the project has faced significant difficulties over costs, governance and approval processes. Questions have also been raised about the future viability of the development and whether it will ultimately proceed.
McAuliffe urged the various parties involved to work together to resolve the situation.
“I again urge all parties to come together to resolve the issues at hand.”
The OPW has been involved in a number of high profile controversies in recent years regarding the waste of public money, including the now-infamous Leinster House bike shed saga, which cost €336,000 – a figure then-Taoiseach Simon Harris described at the time as “inexcusable”.
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