Mr. Tony O'Brien:

I do not know that they stayed quiet, because there does seem to have been quite a lot of discussion and debate, which appears to have been intended to bring a resolution to the matter. I said in response to a question earlier - I believe the Deputy was out of the room - that at an earlier stage it would have been appropriate for someone to put their hand up to say that the process was taking too long and that the fact that there was an ongoing discussion about how to do it rather than doing it needed more significant intervention. It should have been escalated, if necessary, all the way to myself, although I would have hoped it would not have had to get that far. The fact that that escalation did not occur is a source of concern.