David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I accept in the first instance that the Chairman used his judgment on all these issues and his intentions were honourable in how he dealt with all of the threats, I suppose, made against him personally as chair of the committee. He is right that it is par for the course in terms of the role he sits in, and that this will happen from time to time. However, to be fair to members of this committee, when we are preparing a report, if there is a threat of that nature from a Minister for Finance, we should be aware of it. Certainly if there were threats from senior officials – and I think we should know who that senior official is because that senior official tried to thwart the work of this committee, not you personally as Chairman but all of us - we should have been made aware of that notwithstanding the Chairman’s assertion that it strengthened us because we carried on regardless. We would have done that anyway. With respect, that information should have been shared with us, although I accept the Chairman used his judgment. On the exchanges in the Dáil yesterday, comments were made publicly in the Dáil by the Minister. It is not acceptable that you just have two boys who shake hands and make up. That is politics of old.