Former CEO Francis Doherty told the committee that the justification given for installing a second lift - which had no planning permission - was that his predecessor did not want staff or kitchen workers using the same entrance as him.
The former head of homeless charity Peter McVerry Trust authorised €350,000 of works at on a shelter shelter at Kerdiffstown House, near Naas, including a new driveway, a lift shaft and even a peacock enclosure.
The Public Accounts Committee heard the spending took place when the organisation was led by former CEO Pat Doyle.
He had used the facility as his head office during the pandemic.
Former CEO Francis Doherty said the site had an annual budget of €1 million, plus €125,000 in service-level agreements.
He told TDs he only discovered the spending when he became CEO in June 2023 and saw the invoices.
In 2023, the Trust required a €15 million State bailout after its cashflow collapsed.
Doherty told the committee that the justification given for installing a second lift - which had no planning permission - was that his predecessor did not want staff or kitchen workers using the same entrance as him.
“There was the widening of the driveway for €300,000. It’s indefensible that anybody would think that it was appropriate," Doherty said.
Doherty became CEO in June 2023 but resigned four months later, as the scale of the charity’s financial problems emerged.
He had succeeded Pat Doyle, who had led the organisation for nearly 19 years.
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