David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

That is my point and I do not want to hog this, but we cannot have 15 minutes of discussion on the first issue when a more important issue, and one that requires a deep dive, is only given a couple of minutes.

My issue is that I have read Dr. Scally's report several times and it shows failures in system, processes, procurement and audit, all of which come under the remit of the Committee of Public Accounts. It is extraordinary that Dr. Scally is still asking questions in the report because he did not have enough information or enough time to further examine some of the issues. There are issues about the labs and the roll-over of contracts. Whether we have a commission of investigation or not has not yet been determined by the Oireachtas. The committee has a responsibility to look at the areas that come under its remit. Procurement and audit are clearly under the committee's remit, as are failures in the system and process.

The HSE and the Department are scheduled to come in next week. That is a little premature. The committee should do a scoping exercise as to what it now wants to do. Is it going to do a report? Are there going to be a number of hearings? Who should attend the hearings? Otherwise these people will come in next week and we will all go through the motions. It will be aimless and there will be no end product. It is more prudent for the committee to agree terms of reference for our work on this issue either today or next Tuesday and get that from the clerk. That would be a better way to do justice to the issue. There is much in the Scally report which falls under the remit of the Committee of Public Accounts. The committee needs to examine the report and get a report on the issues that are under our remit and then decide the framework.

Will the Comptroller and Auditor General's office examine the Scally report and look at the issues arising in terms of procurement and auditing and the need for a special report?