Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I wish to put a question to Mr. Corrigan. Representatives from the troika were here several times and I imagine Mr. Corrigan met them. Now, it appears to be illegal for the State to try to get a competitive annual rate for legal services from a barrister. This was one of the protected professions which escaped the troika for three years. It looks as if since they got out of the clutches of the troika we are stuck with them for another generation. Did Mr. Corrigan raise the matter with the representatives of the troika? Clearly one of the valuable aspects of having the troika here was to make some structural changes in our society in terms of some of the protected professions. I will quote the figure again. For every award of €1,000 to a person, some €670 must be paid on top of that in legal fees. That is out of all proportion. Did Mr. Corrigan ever raise it or was it outside his brief? I know I raised the matter with representatives from the troika when I met them.