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Fermanagh Herald Published:
Wed, Sep 26, 2007
Civil servant awarded £50,000 compensation
A 52-year old Civil Servant from near Enniskillen who was seconded from the Department of Culture Arts and Leisure (DCAL) to a post with Waterways Ireland at its Enniskillen All-Irelandheadquarters has been awarded an out of court settlement of £50,000 by an IndustrialTribunal in Belfast.The award arose from an action Brian McTeggart took against his new employers after liftingthe lid on alleged mismanagement practices in relation to the way senior posts were allocated,and alleged harassment.Mr McTeggart is a former Director of Corporate Services with the North South Body who agreedto the settlement without an admission of liability.The case was brought by the claimant in 2005 under the Public Interest Disclosure Order inNorthern Ireland.Two years earlier, Mr McTeggart had made a protected disclosure to DCAL and its southerncounterpart, the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, the parentdepartments of Waterways Ireland. This is a procedure under which an employee is entitled toprotection, under 'public disclosure' interest, were he blows the whistle on an allegedmalpractice (s).'ILLEGAL'In his case, he highlighted "illegal recruitment practices in relation to senior posts and criticalissues affecting Waterways Ireland which have the potential to do major damage to the Bodyand the North South process" which, he said, were of greatest concern.He also claimed there was a culture of patronage, bullying and secrecy and that he was himself bullied and harassed by the Chief Executive of the Body when he tried to have these seriouswrongdoings addressed within the organisation.In particular, Mr McTeggart alleged that there was malpractice in appointments, patronage andpolitical influence from the Republic of Ireland in the appointment by the Chief Executive of theDirector of Marketing and Communications to a promoted post in Enniskillen without anyrecruitment process, and the Head of Marketing in similar circumstances.He disclosed particular concerns about the problems facing Waterways Ireland from "the failureof the Chief Executive to effectively lead and manage the organisation as required under theterms of the legislation and the Financial Memorandum".Among many alleged failings, he cited a lack of commitment by the Chief Executive toWaterways Ireland, that this individual was undermining the Body and was planning for itsfailure in Northern Ireland. He highlighted in his disclosure that the Chief Executive wasactively blocking the project to build its new headquarters in Enniskillen and had delayed therecruitment of staff for nearly a year.Mr McTeggart also claimed there were major accountability, efficiency and value for moneyfailings and an absence of corporate and business planning.He highlighted failure to implement the major capital programmes and repeated underspendsof up to ¤10 million, around 25% of the annual budgets, along with steps by the Chief Executive not to be held accountable for performance.He further claimed the legal obligation to implement equality across the organisation and tohave necessary personnel policies was not being adhered to, and that illegal and unethical
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