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COMMITTEE OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS díospóireacht -
Thursday, 8 Nov 2012

Business of Committee

The first item is the minutes of the meetings of 25 and 31 October and 1 November. Are they agreed to? Agreed. As there are no matters arising therefrom, we will move to correspondence received from Accounting Officers and-or Ministers since Thursday, 1 November.

No. 3A.1 is correspondence, dated 1 November 2012, from the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Brendan Howlin, on the Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2012. The correspondence is to be noted and published. The committee should respond in the context of the banking inquiry report which it completed and suggest consideration be given to it as a way forward. Is that agreed? Agreed.

No. 3A.2 is correspondence, dated 6 November 2012, from Mr. Ray Mitchell, parliamentary and regulatory affairs division, Health Service Executive, providing information requested by the committee at its meeting on 9 October. The correspondence is to be noted and published.

The committee also received correspondence which has not been circulated from Senator Fidelma Healy Eames on the payment of salaries and allowances in the voluntary sector, in particular concerning one individual and organisation. We will arrange to have that correspondence circulated today. I take the opportunity to mention it as the Senator contacted me and asked me to ensure it was mentioned that she had raised the matter and was anxious to have it dealt with. The committee will respond to it in due course.

No. 3C comes under the heading of individual correspondence and-or complaints. No. 3C.1 is correspondence, dated 26 October 2012, from Mrs. Barbara Bradley, Nurney, County Carlow, in relation to correspondence with the Commissioner of An Garda Síochána. The correspondence is to be noted.

No. 3D is documents relating to today's meeting. No. 3D.1 is correspondence, dated 10 October 2012, from Mr. Tony O'Brien, director general designate, Health Service Executive, forwarding details of the payment of allowances in the Health Service Executive. The correspondence is to be noted.

No. 3D.2 is correspondence, dated 31 October 2012, from Mr. Ray Mitchell, parliamentary and regulatory affairs division, Health Service Executive, forwarding additional details of payments and allowances in the Health Service Executive. The correspondence is to be noted.

No. 3D.3 is correspondence, dated 31 October 2012, from Mr. Ray Mitchell, parliamentary and regulatory affairs division, Health Service Executive, re opening statement. The correspondence is to be noted and published.

No. 4 is reports, statements and accounts received since our meeting on 1 November. No. 4.1 relates to the Education Finance Board - financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2011. No. 4.1 relates to St. Angela's College Sligo Limited - financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2011. No. 4.3 relates to the National University of Ireland Galway - consolidated financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2011.

No. 5 is our work programme which members should be able to see on the monitors. The committee will meet next week in private session to discuss its report on allowances. The suggestion is it meet in private session at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 15 November, to discuss the report.

Clerk to the Committee

We are working on the draft and hope to finalise it tomorrow evening, following which it will be forwarded to members, with any other necessary correspondence.

Is there any matter on next week's agenda for discussion in public session?

Clerk to the Committee

No. The committee will not meet again in public session until 22 November when it will deal with the National Treasury Management Agency.

The draft report is a work in progress and relies on the input of members.

When can we expect to receive it?

Clerk to the Committee

As I stated, we are finalising it.

Some of it will relate to what happens at this meeting. We have done some work on it and it will be circulated tomorrow evening in order that everyone will have a chance to read it. I do not want members to see it for the first time on Thursday.

Committee members will receive the draft tomorrow and will have until early next week to contact the Clerk.

Clerk to the Committee

We will hold informal meetings with members.

It depends on members reflecting their views on the draft report. It is proposed to start at 10 a.m. on Thursday.

What is the process involved? We will have a meeting at 10 a.m. at which we will go through the draft report in private session. Is there a rough schedule as to when we will report on it?

The Clerk outlined this last week.

Clerk to the Committee

We will have to make a number of changes to the draft report after next week's meeting and will meet again early the following week with a view to publishing it. We will have to publish it the week after next.

After our meeting on Thursday, we may have to hold another meeting. We may have to meet earlier on the following Thursday to meet the deadline.

Let us condense it and get this done. If we need to hold additional meetings within the two week period, let us do so while the information is fresh in people's minds.

Clerk to the Committee

That is fine.

We have agreed an agenda for the meeting on Thursday, 15 November.

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