Renovation of Taoiseach's personal office cost €10,000

Ken Foxe

A spruce up of the Taoiseach’s personal office during the summer cost more than €10,000 with a “very poor” and ragged-looking carpet replaced as part of the work.

The Office of Public Works (OPW) was called in as officials grew worried Micheál Martin’s office was not up to the standard required.

In internal emails, the carpet was described as “very worn” and believed to have been laid originally 35 years ago.

One message from April said: “More recently, some very visible holes have also appeared in the joins.”

A brass rail that attached the carpet to a wooden border was also “very tarnished” and in some places had turned white.

A member of staff from the OPW visited with the Taoiseach’s office eager to get the work done over the summer recess.

An email in May said: “We have a very tight window to make this happen over the summer. The carpet and rail are in very poor condition, and I do not want to leave it for much longer.”

However, the work proved a little more complex than anticipated with a brass rail around the carpet affixed to the floor.
The furniture division of the OPW wrote: “The scenario that this creates is that this effectively renders it as a fixed furniture item and as part of the remit that we operate under, we are prevented from engaging in work of this nature.

“While we have in the past sought to have individual items re-lacquered, (ironmongery) that was primarily related to the restoration of period furniture, in contrast the nature and extent of this request goes far beyond our reach.”

By June, the Department of the Taoiseach said replacement of the carpet was now “essential at this point".

They asked if the brass rail could not simply be sprayed in the places where it was most obviously discoloured.

The Taoiseach’s facilities manager said if the work did not go ahead this summer, the opportunity for replacement of the carpet might be lost for another year.

The work did proceed eventually along with repairs to a scratched meeting table as well as the Taoiseach’s desk and the headrest of his chair.

The problem with the headrest had been noticed by an eagle-eyed member of OPW staff who spotted it was faulty while watching a news report from the office.

Asked about the refurb, a spokesman for the Taoiseach said: “The works included floor and wood panel varnishing, carpet replacement, carpet rail repair and repairs to the meeting table and desk in the office. No new furniture was installed.

“The costs incurred by [us] … amounted to €5,580 excluding VAT. The works ensured that high visibility areas are kept up to the standard required for a prime minister’s office."

On their involvement, the OPW said: “[We lead] on the conservation, protection, care, and maintenance across a range of high-profile historic buildings occupied by Government and State Agencies, including the Department of the Taoiseach.

“The costs incurred by the OPW in respect of the works amounted to €4,960 excluding VAT.”