Michael McLoone is Chairman of B&B Ireland and of Donegal Airport, and of the Prison Service group under Haddington Road, and was, until recently, on the board of Enterprise Ireland and was formerly CEO of Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, and chairman of the Blood Transfusion Board. His brother, Peter, was a globe-trotting CEO of Fás. Another brother, Paul, was chairman of Donegal Tourism. But the focus on this article is on Michael McLoone in his controversion Manager of Donegal County Council (1994-2010). A senior Planner in Donegal County Council, Gerry Convie, was subject to an investigation by his new boss within a week of McLoone taking up the position of Manager in 1994. Ultimately, following a further investigation instigated in 1998, Convie was suspended by Manager McLoone in 1999 for allegedly not following procedures in relation to his purchase of a parcel of land at Magheraroarty, near Bloody Foreland. Convie sued, asserting he had placed his interest on the public register, such as it was, and in all relevant planning applications and had not improperly influenced any planning application. The Department of the Environment, under Noel Dempsey, backed McLoone. In the end, McLoone and Convie signed an out-of-Court agreement that he had merely made an “error of judgement”, and benefited from a financial settlement. He then resigned. In 2001, Jim Harley became Senior Planner. Later McLoone told councillors that Convie was involved in wrongdoing contrary to the signed Agreement and contrary to his later remarks before the High Court. After this, Convie entered private practice and, as a result of some of the matters he saw in that capacity, made a number of complaints to the Minister. As he reverted to private practice, he claims to have discovered many improprieties in the planning system in Donegal, “a cesspit”. Ultimately he complained regarding 20 Case Studies to various Ministers for the Environment and to the Standards in Public Office Commission (which ruled most of the complaints not within its remit) to no avail. In 2006 the Council sued Convie for alleged breach of the Agreement, but dropped the proceedings after a fractious four years, without any damages or costs award, but with huge cost to the County. The current County Manager, Séamus Neely, has enthusiastically expressed his support for the actions and statements of Mr McLoone in all these matters and goes so far as to state that there is nothing wrong with the type of relationships which Jim Harley cultivated and has expressed support for the treatment of Convie by Mr McLoone. Convie worked in Donegal County Council as a planner for 24 years. He claims it was well known in Donegal, and beyond, that he would not capitulate to the “goings-on in planning” by certain councilors and senior officials in Co Donegal. He tried to control one-off housing, produced the first design guide and used to appeal to An Bord Pleanála, on his own behalf and at his own expense, all decisions to grant planning permission pushed through via the infamous S4 motions. Since he left the Council, he has consistently claimed that there was bullying and intimidation within the council of planners who sought to make decisions based exclusively on the planning merits of particular applications. He was pilloried in the local media. Indeed, he claims one councilor constantly referred to him as a ”wee shit from the North”. Michael McLoone attributes the fractiousness to differences of personality and says Convie is motivated by revenge. Jim Harley rose from junior planning positions to become Donegal County Council’s Senior Planner, while also often Acting as Director of Planning, within a period of two years after Convie’s departure, until he resigned in 2006. Senior planners make recommendations to the County Manager who usually would be expected to follow them. In an affidavit that has been opened in court, Convie alleges Harley: 1) recommended permissions for members of his family, his friends and associates that breached the relevant Development Plans – the democratic, legal, planning constitution – to an extent that was almost systemic; 2) submitted planning applications to Donegal County Council on behalf of friends and associates; 3) dealt with planning applications submitted by himself from submission to decision and in express time; 4) ignored the recommendations of other planners; 5) destroyed the recommendations of other planners; 6) submitted fraudulent correspondence to the planning department; 7) forged signatures; 8) improperly interfered and used inappropriate influence as described in a number of planning applications; 9) was improperly close to a number of leading architects and developers in Donegal, including having a family relationship with the head of the largest ‘architectural’ practice in Donegal, with whom he holidayed but the relationship with whom was never declared. In the affidavit opened in court, Convie alleges: Jim Harley inappropriately manipulated planning applications at Ballyliffin in Inishowen to promote planning permissions for associates of his on lands where permission had previously been refused and there had been no change in policy or in the development plan. A next-door neighbour of Jim Harley submitted an outline planning application for a site he owned in an area of exceptionally high amenity between the road and sea at Malin Head, for which previous applications for other people had been unsuccessful. Jim Harley dealt with the planning application, while Convie was on leave, recommending granting permission, and did not make a declaration of interest. Later, the neighbour made an application for full permission pursuant to the outline permission. Jim Harley submitted the application and, according to Convie, forged the name “K O’Donnell” on the plans. In the end, another planner in the Council, in record time, recommended allowing permission and this was endorsed by Convie as it was predicated on the outline permission. Later Harley submitted an application for his own holiday house within these overall lands, with a declaration of interest. The problem was the failure to declare his interest in applications that were not in his name.
