David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

One of the issues that we examined in the context of all the institutes of technology is the same names coming up over and over again, such as Deloitte, KPMG, Ernst and Young, Arthur Cox and many more. All these organisations were well paid to do work for the institutes. I want a ten-year look-back, broken down by year, institute and what work each organisation did for the institutes and how much they were paid. It strikes me that he who pays the piper calls the tune. Perhaps Mr. Love can explain why the HEA exists at all if all this money is being handsomely earned by these organisations? He has mentioned self-regulation, self-investigation and self-examination by the institutes on several occasions today and sees that as a good thing. Ireland does not have a good history of self-examination or self-investigation. The HEA exists for a reason. Why does it exist and why does Mr. Love, a well-paid public servant, head up that organisation? What is his role in regard to the process when complaints are made and examined?