Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 14 February 2019

Public Accounts Committee

Business of Committee

9:00 am

Photo of Seán FlemingSeán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That is fine.

The next item on the agenda is correspondence. There are three categories, the first of which is briefing notes and opening statements for today's meeting. Before we get into the details of the correspondence received, what I have is quite a lot but not all of the documentation we have received in recent days on various meetings and reports in connection with the national children's hospital. We will hold all of it together for a separate discussion and deal with the other correspondence received first, but I want to give members an indication of the volume of material that has been sent to the committee as a result of our questioning at a previous meeting.

Nos. 1943A and 1958 are items of correspondence received from Mr. Peter McCarthy, CEO of Enet, providing briefing material and an opening statement for today’s meeting. We will note and publish them. Is that agreed? Agreed.

No. 1953A is correspondence received from the company Imagine, providing an opening statement for today’s meeting. We will note and publish it. Is that agreed? Agreed.

No. 1959A is correspondence received from BT for today’s meeting. We will note and publish it. Is that agreed? Agreed.

No. 1962A is correspondence received from Eir for today’s meeting. We will note and publish it. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Nos. 1963A and 1964A are items of correspondence received from the Regional Internet Service Providers Association, providing an opening statement for today’s meeting. We will note and publish them. We will also note and publish the documentation received. Is that agreed? Agreed.

The second category is correspondence received from Accounting Officers and-or Ministers as a follow-up to requests made at Committee of Public Accounts meetings.

No. 1932B is a letter received from Mr. Robert Watt, Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, providing information requested by the committee on the Government banking service contract in respect of the service being provided by Danske Bank. Mr. Watt does not provide specific details, but he mentions the fact that there are up to 50 million transactions, mainly involving the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection which accounts for some 43 million of them. Mr. Watt says the service delivery and relationship management aspects of the contract are primarily managed by Danske Bank's Dublin based team supported by the head office in Copenhagen in Denmark. It had a pre-existing arrangement with An Post for cash and cheque transactions, etc. We will note and publish the correspondence. Is that agreed? Agreed.

No. 1937B is correspondence received from Dr. Des Fitzgerald in the University of Limerick, providing information requested by the committee. We asked for the total number of subsidiary companies; a breakdown of the staff and the board membership, as well as the most recent financial statements for Plassey Campus Centre. All of the information is provided, with a list of all the companies over which it has control and the financial statements for Plassey Campus Centre, a company limited by guarantee, formerly known as Plassey Campus Centre Limited. I note that the company which is controlled by the University of Limerick has a turnover of €37.168 million and revenue reserves of €36.273 million. I will ask the Comptroller and Auditor General to confirm same. Is the company consolidated in the accounts of the University of Limerick?

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