Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I certainly will not dismiss it today because I think it would be unreasonable to do so, but it would have many implications down the line. I suggest, therefore, that the committee wait and see what comes out of the proceedings, but I am not passing up the proposal. The committee is to talk to the OCI this afternoon and will hear what it has to state about it. It has a legal problem, on which everybody seems to have a view, but it seems that it could be solvable. It seems that we are in a fairly absurd situation with the contract binding to 2026, but it could be sorted out. Prima facie, yes, I think the committee should certainly be looking for Mr. Hickey to come here to discuss all matters relevant to it, particularly if there are areas where he would not self-incriminate.

On the honorarium, it is a pretty strange, peculiar payment. It was far over the minimum wage, as Deputy Mick Barry would know. An honorarium, as defined by the judge, is really a token recognition of voluntary work. It is a very worrying element of what was going on and indicates how the place was run, if that is the most benign interpretation. It is also - I want to hammer the point home - a very useful part of the report, as we found that the president was getting €60,000 a year. I do not know whether this was unique, but I suggest it might have been and it is certainly concerning.

Deputy Mick Barry mentioned the London games. I am getting worried because I agree with so much of what he is saying, but I am sure if it would worry him more than it would me. On the reconciliation accounts, the Deputy mentioned a €60,000 payment. The judge mentions that it is peculiar that is such an exact figure, that it is unexplained and that there are no reconciliation payments. I would be concerned about that and we really have to find out about it. All sorts of party, including the auditors, might be asked about it. If there are unexplained reconciliation payments and it occurred in Rio de Janeiro and London, we will have to be satisfied that they can be reconciled and find out what was actually happening before we give the go-ahead for future payments. We will have to be happy that everything is in order, both in the past and at present. I do not know the answer as to whether the emails would have been handed over.

I cannot tell.