As the Chairman is unable to attend, I will stand in for him. As he always does, I ask committee members to switch off their mobile telephones. Leaving them on will hinder getting across the message of members. We have a long meeting ahead of us and we will try to get it under way as quickly as possible. Is it agreed to go into private session? Agreed.
The joint committee went into private session at 1.45 p.m and resumed in public session at 2.55 p.m.