John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform allocates the money to the Department of Education and Skills. I do not expect it to go down layers. The Department of Education and Skills allocates the money to the HEA. It is not expected to go down layers, but I would expect Mr. Nolan's Department at least to have a report from the Department of Education and Skills. I would expect that Department to be looking in on the HEA. Mr. Nolan is telling me that large sums of taxpayers' money go down through the system and this is the result of some of it. Nobody is prepared in some respects of this case to take responsibility for not taking a full hands-on approach, although Mr. Ó Foghlú did so a minute ago. I would expect the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to ensure the Department of Education and Skills ensured the HEA ensured that in WIT, good governance would be observed and taxpayers' money would be protected. To come before this committee and say that the institute is at fault, while the institute representatives tell us that the systems failed, is just more of the same. I would like to see it much tighter.