By Mary Regan
Ms Kennelly finished in her role on June 13, having told the Public Accounts Committee two weeks earlier that she was “very disappointed” she had not been granted a second five-year term.
“I had very great plans for the organisation, the board fully supported me,” she said.
The Arts Council, which is the national government body for funding and promoting the arts, has been embroiled in controversy since it emerged in February that it had spent €6.7m on an IT project that was subsequently abandoned.
Mr O’Donovan told the Oireachtas Communications Committee that he was informed of this issue by the secretary general of his department when he was on his way back from Áras an Uachtaráin after being given his ministerial seal of office.
“Pretty much every day since then has been dominated by this,” he said, adding that he is not going to “punish artists or the artistic community” for “a total waste of public money”.
The minister said he has “no intention of going after the money that goes into the Arts Council. But I am going to make sure that the systems, governance, oversight, management and operation of it are transformed into a fit-for-purpose entity.”
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Under questioning from Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, Mr -O’Donovan said he consulted his department officials and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform before making the “proportionate” decision not to renew the contract of Ms Kennelly.
“We had a CEO who was out of contract,” he said. “And based on what I knew and on the amount of money that had been expended, and on the fact this project was not going to be delivered, what was I to do? Was I to renew it for five more years or was I to take a decision that was proportionate?
“My motivation is to make sure that the governance, oversight and responsibilities of the Arts Council are fit for purpose in the spending of monies that are voted by Dáil Éireann to them.”
He said he also became aware of an alleged data breach at the Arts Council when he spoke to his department officials last week. “I don’t think it would be fair to comment on something that is under a live investigation and will probably wind up with the Data Protection Commissioner,” he said.
The Department of Culture, Communications and Sport has instructed the chair of the Arts Council to draw up a report on an alleged incident that took place on June 19.
The department had also written to the Data Protection Commissioner, as was reported in Saturday’s Irish Independent.