Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Comptroller and Auditor General and his staff, as always, for the excellent reports prepared for and presented to us. This is my first time to meet Mr. Watt and I thank him for his presence here today, for his frankness and positive approach with respect to his statement and the answers provided. I note the Comptroller and Auditor General's confidence in that he stated that he views the situation as we move forward in a much more positive light. Mr. Watt referred to an overall context in his opening statement. In my brief time as a member of this committee I have heard that phrase an unbelievable number of times, especially from the representatives of the HSE when they have appeared before the committee. That phrase "overall context" seems to permeate every debate we have had. I want to speak about context. With respect to a report such as this in the build up to the budget in October, there is a political context because we have conflicting demands and requests.

Deputy Connolly touched on the education sector and I want to discuss it as well because one of the biggest demands we face is in the third level sector. The expert report on third level education prepared by Peter Cassells showed that a minimum of €120 million per annum will be needed over the next five years. As a party, we discussed the report in depth on Monday and one of the greatest concerns we have relates to that money going into the correct spheres within the sector. One can see the report, and the fears expressed by the Comptroller and Auditor General, that three payments were made from two bodies at a cost of nearly €750,000 without prior sanction from the Department. I ask that when we are talking about context there is an appreciation of the fear and frustration of not only elected Members but also members of the public. Whether it is the Department of Education and Skills or the Department of Health - which always uses this phrase - there is a very good fear that when payments are made, they are not always made in the correct manner.