SENIOR FIGURES in Fás have suggested that an inquiry into compliance with expenditure and procurement controls may be needed to restore public confidence in the State agency.

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mary Coughlan met the director general of Fás, Rody Molloy, on Tuesday, and the Fás chairman, Peter McLoone, on Wednesday, to discuss recent developments concerning the authority, a spokeswoman for Ms Coughlan said.

The employment and training authority has a budget of €1 billion, but internal audit reports released to The Irish Timesin July and this week have raised concerns about controls within the organisation.

Fine Gael has also sought and received internal documentation from Fás through the Freedom of Information Act. This week, spokesman Leo Varadkar called for an overhaul of the authority's leadership structures.

Figures in Fás are understood to be of the view that public confidence in the organisation could be restored if a forum was provided to allow management to discuss the audit reports and outline how Fás has responded to them.

It is understood there are a series of 10 or more internal audit reports that are critical of aspects of the organisation's operation over recent years. Rather than having details of the various reports appear in the media or be disclosed in the Dáil over a drawn-out period, senior figures in Fás believe it would be better if an inquiry was given all the reports, and an opportunity was given to Fás executives to respond to them and show how they have acted on their recommendations.

"Maybe a Dáil committee could look at the reports and at what has been done in response," said a source. The source was against outside consultants being engaged to conduct an inquiry. "We don't need to tie the organisation up in knots. The board and the executive would welcome an examination [of the audit reports and how the company has responded]," the source said, "probably staff would too."

An inquiry into the reports and the authority's response to them could allow Fás to show the public that every effort was being made to ensure value for money is being achieved and to counter any suggestion that taxpayers' money was "going astray". Also, it would allow the organisation to counter any damage to staff morale.

The internal documentation that has come into the public domain has shown Fás internal audit reports making harsh findings, and management responding in equally robust language.

When the economy reached full employment in the late 1990s, the government charged Fás with attracting people to come to work here, and with upskilling those in employment. The Fás budget was increased substantially and the organisation went through what a spokesman has said was a challenging period.

The pressures of those years led to compliance problems as attempts were made to fast-track developments, according to the source. Most of the negative audit reports have to do with this period. The recommendations in the audit reports have been and are being acted upon, according to Fás.