‘This refusal sends out the wrong message to the public,’ says Joint Oireachtas Transport Committee chair
Chief executive Kenny Jacobs and DAA chair Basil Geoghegan were asked this week by the committee to appear next Wednesday to discuss governance issues at the company which operates Dublin Airport and Cork Airport.
However, the DAA confirmed that invitation has been declined.
The DAA holds a board meeting in Cork tomorrow. The DAA has confirmed that Mr Jacobs will attend the board meeting. It declined to say if the current crisis is on the agenda and if it is, whether Mr Jacobs would absent himself from such a portion of the meeting.
The chair of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Fine Gael TD Michael Murphy, described the refusal to appear before the committee as “deeply disappointing”.
He said the committee “was not going away” on the issue and would now have to examine avenues including potential parliamentary powers to force an appearance.
“Dublin Airport is a national gateway, the front door to Ireland, and with that comes responsibility to answer reasonable questions in a public forum,” said Mr Murphy.
“Refusing to engage with the Oireachtas transport committee does nothing to build confidence in the governance of the airport,” he added. “It’s all about fronting up, not closing doors and it’s regrettable that they have closed the door.”
Relations between Mr Jacobs and Mr Geoghegan have deteriorated in recent months. Earlier this year, two complaints were made under the DAA’s protective disclosures policy in relation to Mr Jacobs. Neither of the complaints were upheld.
An agreement has been reached between Mr Jacobs and the board that would see him secure a roughly €1m exit package and leave in January. By then, he would be just three years into a seven-year term as CEO.
That deal has to be signed off by Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien and Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers, however.
“The committee will have to now consider what actions are open to us in terms of ensuring that necessary accountability,” said Mr Murphy. “Whether that’s re-issuing the invitation or possibly exploring other parliamentary avenues, but I’m very clear – the transport committee is not going away on this.”
He warned: “The DAA will have to account to the Oireachtas in some form. This isn’t about confrontation. It’s about transparency. An open conversation always strengthens credibility and in this case, the credibility of the DAA.”
“This refusal sends out the wrong message to the public,” he added. “It’s not just about the severance package. For me, it’s more about what appears to be a breakdown between the CEO and the board and trying to understand what has happened there.”
Mr Jacobs’ loss of support at board level left him in an increasingly uncertain position but DAA staff were told in an internal memo today, that he “is and remains the DAA’s CEO”.
“In the event of any mutual agreement being agreed and approved, we will update you,” the circular added. “As always, our focus is, and will continue to be, on our business, passengers and customers, and any change would take place over an agreed timeframe.”
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