Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú:

We are working through a process whereby, to strengthen the legislative and formal links we have by means of formal letters and regular meetings, and having regard to best governance, we felt it would be a useful mechanism to develop memoranda of understanding with agencies generally. We are going through a process of developing various memoranda of understanding of agencies in line with good practice. It is not that we are questioning the practice of the past and that we did not have very regular and detailed meetings with the HEA and a regular exchange of information. We felt it would be very helpful to capture the various roles and responsibilities clearly. For example, the HSE would be operating in the context of the code of governance for State agencies and making regular statements to both the Comptroller and Auditor General and ourselves. We felt it would be helpful, however, to capture generally an overall picture in the memorandum of understanding. It would have had regard to all our interaction with the HEA and, in particular, to the system of governance and accountability and the sorts of issues that would regularly arise in audits of the Comptroller and Auditor General or in considerations of the Committee of Public Accounts. It was not specially aimed at addressing those concerns; it was a general working relationship. It also arose in part out of the developing situation pertaining to the changing role of the HEA in the national strategy for higher education and its implementation. We are developing that further and are in discussions with the HEA on its changing role and how it can be best placed to develop that role further in the context of the role the Government envisages for it.