An article in the Observer tells how the Foreign Office lost more than £1.3m of taxpayers' money by selling off the British ambassador's Victorian residence in Dublin following security concerns, then buying a new house riddled with asbestos and sitting on it for seven years of the property boom before selling it as the market soured. Details of the losses came to light in a parliamentary report published this month.

The report by the Commons foreign affairs select committee says Glencairn House was sold for £6.26m in 1999. The following year, the FO bought Marlay Grange, but did not conduct "an invasive survey" until after the sale. It then became clear that renovation and removal of the asbestos would cost much more than had been first thought. Sir Peter Ricketts, permanent under-secretary at the Foreign Office, admitted the department had made a loss of £1.38m.

An invasive or type 3 survey would have highlighted the hidden issues but is sometimes not carried out as some damage will occur during the survey but this can be made good afterwards.

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