NI Conservatives’ agriculture spokesman, Paul Leeman, has described the Audit Office’s verdict that a key Department of Agriculture facility does not offer value for money as “typical of the culture of waste at DARD”.
“The Auditor General has reported that the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) habitually spends too much on its projects”, Paul explained. “There are serious issues around how the Institute is governed and sufficient checks are not in place to make sure that it delivers value for money. The Audit Office’s report is very welcome, but the waste will not come as any surprise to those who keep a close eye on how Michelle O’Neill and DARD operate.”
“This is the department which blew over £64 million, racking up fines for messing up the distribution of European money. It was also responsible for the Northern Ireland Testing Plant at Crossnacreevy, which was overvalued by £190 million, in a piece of astonishing accounting, seemingly aimed at making the books balance. Then there’s the plan to move the department’s headquarters to Ballykelly, which, apart from costing taxpayers money, is hugely unpopular with O’Neill’s own staff.”
“Throughout the executive there is enormous inefficiency, but it is particularly bad at the Department of Agriculture. The Audit Office’s report provides a timely reminder that millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money, which could be spent on delivering vital rural services and helping farmers and fishermen, are being wasted on bad management and shoddy practices. It’s time to ask, is the minister even interested in stamping out this culture of waste?”