David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. It is important, in the first instance, that we do not allow issues like this to become a sideshow or act as a distraction because this very much mirrors what happened when NAMA first came before the Committee of Public Accounts to deal with the committee's examination of Project Eagle. At the time there were unprecedented attacks on the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, on him personally and on his staff. We have dealt with all of that in our report. There was an attempt, on NAMA's part, to set a fire somewhere else and for it to be the narrative. There was an element of that yesterday when the Minister was in the Dáil. As the Chairman quite rightly pointed out, he wanted to make the debate about him and that issue. We need to keep the focus on the reason we carried out the report. We have a job of work to do to ensure there was value for money and proper examinations were carried out.

Having said that, it was outrageous that the Minister for Finance called on Deputy Fleming, as Chairman of this committee, to resign for doing his job. As I said yesterday in the Dáil, it is important that members of this committee reaffirm their confidence in him as Chair. I certainly have confidence in him as Chair. It was outrageous that he was asked to resign on the floor of the Dáil.

The Minister cast aspersions on members of the committee and its work. He claimed that we did not fairly carry out our work and did not conduct a proper examination. I take great offence at his claim because we sat here, as the Chairman knows. The members of this committee in this room were the ones who sat through nearly all of the hearings.