Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 11 April 2019

Public Accounts Committee

Matters Relating to the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board Financial Statements 2017: Professor Chris Fitzpatrick

9:00 am

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

We will now commence our third session. At our meeting last week, we agreed to invite Professor Chris Fitzpatrick to attend this meeting following his correspondence with the committee regarding the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board's financial statements for 2017. I welcome Professor Fitzpatrick, who is a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital and a clinical professor with the UCD school of medicine. He is also one of the authors of the report Putting Children First - Proposal for a Word Class Tri-located National Paediatric Hospital, which was circulated to members for information.

I remind members, witnesses and people in the Public Gallery to turn their mobile phones off or to place them in flight mode. I advise Professor Fitzpatrick that, by virtue section 17(2)(l) of the Defamation Act 2009, witnesses are protected by absolute privilege in respect of their evidence to the committee. However, if he is directed by the committee to cease giving evidence on a particular matter and he continues to so do, he is entitled thereafter only to a qualified privilege in respect of his evidence. He is directed that only evidence connected with the subject matter of these proceedings is to be given and he is asked to respect the parliamentary practice to the effect that, where possible, he should not criticise or make charges against any person, persons or entity by name or in such a way as to make him, her or it identifiable.

Members are reminded that Professor Fitzpatrick is here on a voluntary basis to inform our examination of the financial statements as part of our work looking at the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board financial statements. They are also reminded of the provision in Standing Orders to the effect that the committee should refrain from inquiring into any merits of a policy or policies of the Government, or a Minister of the Government, or the merits of the objectives of such policy. Our focus is on whether proper financial public procedures have been followed and whether value for money has been achieved by the work of the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board to date.

I propose that, following Professor Fitzpatrick's opening remarks, we have a round of clarifying questions from the members present. Members can indicate when they want to speak. I call on Professor Fitzpatrick to make his opening statement.

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