A LOCAL GOVERNMENT audit report has revealed that Clare County Council paid “higher than market value” when paying out €8 million for two separate sites, including “prime coastal land” adjacent to the Cliffs of Moher.

In her 20-page report of the Council’s 2023 financial statements, Local Government Auditor, Joanne Greene discloses that the €8 million purchase of the two sites “were supported by independent valuations which were based on special interest” to the Council and therefore constituted paying a higher than market value”. 

Greene said: “The Council also agreed to pay the vendor costs which exceeded €200,000.”

Greene said that at the time of audit “there are issues in relation to planning and right of way that still need to be resolved”.

In the Council chief executive’s response enclosed in the report, it states that the purchase of the sites “was considered key in the context of the successful implementation of the Cliffs of Moher Strategy 2040 and came about after 50 years of pursuing this objective to protect and preserve the lands adjacent to the Cliffs of Moher”.

The CEO reply stated that this objective “is supported by policies of Clare County Council and National Government which aim to protect the natural environment and biodiversity of the lands adjacent to the Cliffs of Moher”

It added that the Council “is committed to ensuring best practice and value for money is achieved in the purchase of lands in line with the objectives set out in the Cliffs of Moher Strategy 2040”. 

A spokeswoman for the Council today said that €8m paid out and €200,000 in vendor costs “was for the accumulated costs associated with lands purchased at key locations adjacent to the Cliffs of Moher Experience, including prime coastal land”.

She said: “The purchase of these lands was supported by two independent valuations, and their expert advice received and relied upon.”

Asked to provide the purchase price for each site and the size of each parcel of land, the spokeswoman said: “Clare County Council is not in a position to release further details of this commercially sensitive purchase.”

In a statement the council stated that the Cliffs of Moher is the largest natural attraction in Ireland recording 1.3m visitors to the Cliffs of Moher Experience in 2023. 

It stated that “to address the environmental heritage and strategic infrastructure needs of the Cliffs of Moher, Clare County Council assigned a team of staff and appointed specialist technical consultants to develop a widely consulted Cliffs of Moher Strategy which presents a long-term vision for the sustainable development of this world-class natural environmental heritage site and visitor attraction over the next 20 years”.

It stated that “contained in its master plan are adjacent lands necessary for the future development of the site. The Cliffs of Moher site needs additional lands for expansion of pathways, safe coastal walk access, on-site infrastructure and some additional buildings/facilities for the carrying capacity and requirement to distribute visitors”.