David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Mr. Ó Foghlú might also listen to my concerns, which I will articulate as best I can. We have dealt with a number of institutes of technology and universities where very serious issues have emerged. These include the University of Limerick, Cork Institute of Technology, Waterford Institute of technology, and institutions in Galway and Sligo. A report of the Comptroller and Auditor General will come out in respect of Limerick and Sligo with a separate report on Waterford. Some of these are issues that we raised. I remember when I first raised the issue of the spin out companies and research and development and we were told there was nothing to see and there was no issue. Mr. Ó Foghlú was not in a position to answer the questions then but we were told to wait and see. We pushed and pushed and the more we pushed and looked into it the more we saw there were issues. Now we have two reports, one of which went to the Attorney General and I will come back to that later. The two reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General, into Waterford, Limerick and Sligo, will deal with a range of issues. We know that whistleblowers came forward in those organisations and raised very serious concerns. Our view collectively, and we have all raised issues individually, is we did not think the issues were taken as seriously as they should have been. That is my experience.

Dr. Love spoke about a lack of lines of demarcation between the HEA and the Department but then we have the Accounting Officers of some of the institutes and universities not believing they are accountable, as far as I can see. The attitude of some of those who have come before the committee left a lot to be desired. I ask Mr. Ó Foghlú to respond to this.

Dr. Love spoke about a difficulty in the relationship between his board and the executive. What did he mean by this? I ask Mr. Horgan to respond to this question also.