Mr. David Cooney:

The Deputy asked whether I am satisfied. I am in the process of satisfying myself. I have started a process. What I have seen initially is encouraging but I have asked the evaluation and audit unit to take a thorough look at this, to look at these reports and interrogate them to identify weaknesses.

In terms of what happened, if the system is okay and something does not work, the usual explanation is that somebody did not do their job. The problem is that I can never guarantee that somebody will do their job. I can guarantee that the systems are in place, but when humans are involved, humans make errors and I cannot guarantee that nobody will make an error. What I can do is ensure the systems are in place and that everybody knows what they are expected to do. I have had face-to-face meetings with the ambassador and the internal auditor in the embassy in Uganda, neither of whom I am blaming, but I have made it clear what should have happened and what needs to happen. I am not trying to finger somebody for doing this. I do not want to go that route of having people in fear that they will lose their jobs because they have done something. The most likely reaction to that climate of fear is that people will try to cover up. If we find somebody who continues to make errors and is not up to the job, we will get rid of them. I want to ensure the system works and that if something is not working, we can deal with it honestly and openly and put it right. That includes coming before this committee and being interrogated on it.