Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I see. I just signed the letter yesterday. It is a response to the OECD report in which there are very useful observations. I have said to this committee previously that deep recession is not the best time to ask parliamentarians to engage on spending issues. When the whole trajectory of spending was downwards, there was not much appetite to engage, in my judgment. Now is a very good time to do exactly what the committee has embarked on. My Department will co-operative fully with this committee and the work it wants to do in achieving those objectives.