UL emergency meeting hears matters need to be concluded 'once and for all'

AN EMERGENCY meeting of the University of Limerick's Governing Authority has heard that “outstanding governance matters” need to be concluded “once and for all.”

In an email sent to UL staff and students this Monday, the university’s governing authority stated that all outstanding issues regarding the City Campus “must be tackled urgently.”

Following a heavily criticised appearance of UL President Kerstin Mey before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the emergency meeting took place on Sunday.

After the meeting, it was agreed by UL’s Governing Authority that the way the PAC’s questions were answered, “reflected poorly” on the university. 

The email also stated that "given the legal advice," UL’s governing authority accepted that a “discussion in public session was not straightforward.”

They stated that transparency was “intrinsic” to “good governance and how the university communicates.”

UL’s president agreed to fully resource a strategic governance committee which will be led by Provost and Deputy President Shane Kilcommins. 

According to the governing authority, the first order of business of the committee must be to “unblock” any impediments to the governing authority viewing the KPMG report, which the governing authority commissioned to begin with. The report contains details of UL’s purchase of the former Dunnes Stores site on Sarsfield street, which cost them €8.3 million.

The governing authority have also requested to be regularly updated on the progress being made, and the first report should be presented to them on June 15.  

Several staff members told the Limerick Leader they were left “appalled by the management” following the PAC appearance, as well as by Professor Mey’s "circus-like performance" and "soap-opera performance" in PAC.

As a result, “many professors” signed a correspondence that was presented to UL’s Governing Authority, as they felt they were “being left in the dark.”