Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome from the Department of Education and Skills its Secretary General, Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú; and from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, Ms Marie Mulvihill, who is from the education expenditure and policy unit. Our meeting today relates to the education and training board sector. Last week we discussed correspondence dated 24 October 2017 from the Department of Education and Skills providing follow-up information, as requested by the committee, on the transfer of properties as part of the redress with regard to the cost of the child abuse inquiry. This matter has been ongoing for 15 years and the committee has had difficulty bringing clarity to the position with respect to moneys and properties transferred to the State as part of that redress.

For that reason the committee is agreed to allocate 15 minutes for a follow up on the correspondence we received two weeks ago, before we proceed with the main business of the meeting.

Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú is accompanied by Mr. Hubert Loftus, assistant secretary, Ms Mary Cregg, principal officer, and Mr. Aongus Ó hAonghusa, assistant principal officer. I am not proposing to have a full round of questions on this issue. Deputy Connolly has indicated. I call Deputy Connolly to address this specific issue.