Council vows to address expenditure issues raised by auditor

Mayo County Council has been asked to address fuel card issues following an audit report.

The council had approximately 230 fuel cards with a gross expenditure in 2022 of approximately €860,000. These fuel cards are used for the purchase of business fuel and related items. 

The local authority does not have pre-set guidelines as to the authorisation limits and levels of spend for these cards that are consistent across the municipal districts. Whilst in general they appear to operate correctly, it was noted that significant supporting documentation was not been maintained on file for the payment of fuel in some cases.

"Mayo County Council should address this issue," said the auditor. "Furthermore, Mayo County Council does not maintain a central register as to whether the expenditure on these cards relates to vehicles that are rented or relate to vehicles that they own. They should conduct a review of this area to identify if purchasing or leasing vehicles represents the best value for money,” added the auditor.

The council's chief executive Kevin Kelly made the following response: 

"The auditor's comments are noted, along with the acknowledgment that the operation of fuel cards, in general, is operating correctly. The council has appointed a dedicated fleet manager and work is underway to review all aspects of fleet procurement and management. This will address the fuel cards issues raised by the auditor," Mr Kelly added.

Meanwhile, the council's rates arrears have reduced from €4.3m at the end of 2021 to €3.4m at the end of 2022, and the amount collected increased from €20.9m in 2021 to €31.6m in 2022. The increase in the amount collected is largely because the rates waiver in 2021 was €10.1m whereas it was €1.3m in 2022.

The auditor stated that significant efforts have been made by the council to address property management issues but follow-up work is still required as evidenced by the take-on of €112,000 in historical assets in 2022. Issues were also noted pertaining to the management of parking charges at the 2021 audit. Significant improvements occurred in 2022, but some weaknesses still existed.