Are the minutes of the meeting of 6 October agreed? Agreed. We will proceed to deal with correspondence received since our meeting of Thursday, 6 October. Correspondence from Mr. Michael Howard, Secretary General of the Department of Defence, providing updated information on matters scheduled for examination today. This correspondence is to be noted and published. Correspondence received on 6 October from the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, forwarding documentation from Mr. Noel Wardick regarding alleged malpractice at the Irish Red Cross. This correspondence is to be noted and published. The committee will examine chapter 32, Financial Control of the Irish Red Cross Society today, giving members an opportunity to raise these matters, if they so wish.
Correspondence received on 5 October from Mr. Humphrey Deegan in regard to the audit committee, Youthreach, Macroom. This correspondence is to be noted and forwarded to the Accounting Officer of the Department of Education and Skills for detailed note on the issues raised and appropriate follow up. Correspondence received on 7 October from Mr. Seán Gorman, Secretary General of the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, in regard to investigations into allegations previously made to the committee by Mr. Paul Russell. This correspondence is to be noted.
Correspondence received on 6 October from Mr. Kevin Cardiff, Secretary General of the Department of Finance, in regard to the redaction of papers circulated to the committee, which were to be released under a freedom of information request. This correspondence is to be noted. Correspondence received on 11 October from Mr. Michael Howard, Secretary General of the Department of Defence, providing a note previously requested by the committee and correspondence from Mr. Myles Duffy, Glenageary, County Dublin, regarding Vote 36 on the Irish Red Cross Society. This correspondence is to be noted and a copy of this correspondence is to be forwarded to the original complainant and members may follow up this during the course of today's public session.
Correspondence received on 11 October from Mr. Michael Howard, Secretary General of the Department of Defence. His opening statement is to be noted and published. Correspondence received on 12 October from Mr. Noel Wardick, the former head of the International Department of the Irish Red Cross Society in regard to forwarding correspondence from Transparency International Ireland in relation to the Irish Red Cross Society. This is to be noted and published. Again members will have the opportunity to raise the issues relating to this correspondence at today's examination.
Correspondence dated 12 October from Ms Josephine Feehily, chairman of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, providing information requested at the meeting of 22 September 2011 to be noted and published. Correspondence dated 12 October from Mr. Paul O'Toole, director general of FÁS, forwarding correspondence from Mazars regarding inaccurate information given to the Public Accounts Committee. This correspondence is to be noted and published. Members will recall that we got legal advice from the parliamentary legal adviser at our meeting of 5 October and on foot of that advice the committee wrote to FÁS stating it should seek the reasons for the findings and incorrect information, which was given to the committee in 2008 and 2009. On Tuesday last the committee secretariat was informed that the High Court case between FÁS and one of its employees, Mr. Greg Craig, whose previous complaints had been investigated by Mazars, which made the finding that incorrect information had been given to the PAC had been settled. As members will have seen in newspapers, the terms of the settlement included a provision which would enable FÁS to deal with the concerns of this committee.
Late yesterday evening a letter was received from FÁS which enclosed Mazars letters, giving an outline of the findings of where incorrect information was given to the committee. If members want an opportunity to study that letter, we can defer it until next week or if we are happy with the explanation given, we can dispose of it today. In saying this, the 2010 accounts for FÁS will be examined by the committee at its meeting of 1 December and we can examine in more detail the issues raised in the Mazars report of the settlement reached with its former employee.
Are members satisfied that an adequate explanation has been received from FÁS or shall we defer it for further consideration? We can take it in the context of our meeting in December. On a related matter, it appears that extracts from legal advice given to the committee by the parliamentary legal adviser were quoted in news media of last Friday. The legal advice is generally given to the committee on a trust basis and all legal advices are confidential and deemed to be committee papers, which can only be released by a decision of the committee. I ask colleagues to bear this in mind when dealing with such work in terms of issues that might arise at this committee. I ask the clerk to circulate a memorandum to members on the issue, so that they are informed.
