Conor Murphy is appearing before the committee for the first time since the water crisis The Regional Development Minister Conor Murphy is due to appear before the Stormont committee responsible for scrutinising his department.
The minister is expected to face questioning over his department’s handling of the recent water crisis.
More than 40,000 homes were off mains supply after an unprecedented period of cold weather.
Mr Murphy’s appearance also follows a draft report which was critical of his department over NI Water’s governance.
The report, commissioned by the Public Accounts Committee, described the department’s arrangements for overseeing NI Water as “the worst of all possible worlds.”
The review was prompted after another report found that millions of pounds of contracts were being awarded without proper competitive tendering.
The PAC probe has criticised DRD’s overall handling of NI Water, hitting out at how its governance arrangements were designed for a commercial company despite it effectively remaining in public hands.
It says the oversight of NIW, established in 2007, was looser than it was for other non-departmental public bodies.
Controversies
It is the latest in a string of controversies to hit NI Water.
Its chief executive Laurence MacKenzie resigned in the wake of the water crisis, with many people critical of the government-owned company’s failure to come to the aid of those in need.
A two-strand review which will examine the role of NI Water and the department separately is expected to be finished at the end of February.
The committee is likely to also quiz the minister on the draft PAC report which was leaked to the media on Tuesday evening.
On procurement procedure, the review says the “inexcusable” mistakes were part of a “deeply embedded culture” and called for root and branch reform of policy.
A previous review into procurement, which led to the sacking of NIW four directors, was curtailed by Mr Priestly too quickly, the PAC found.
It added that all those who were on the independent review team had potential conflicts of interest.
‘Utterly disgraceful’
It criticised evidence given to it by Mr Priestly, and said it was “utterly disgraceful” that he drafted a letter of complaint to it on behalf of one of the review team.
Mr MacKenzie’s evidence to the committee was also criticised.
Both NI Water and the Department of Regional Development said they would not comment on a leaked draft report.
The chairman of the PAC, Sinn Fein MLA Paul Maskey, said that he was disappointed the draft had been leaked and he would seek to get to the bottom of how it happened.
SDLP member of Stormont’s regional development committee Conall McDevitt said that the report raised “serious questions” and that Regional Development Minister Conor Murphy was responsible for the alleged failings detailed.
He added: “The only senior figure who has been in a leadership position throughout the period covered by the report is Conor Murphy.
“The buck stops at his desk. He is the head of the Department for Regional Development which has now been found to have fallen below the standard of good government.”
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