Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

-----and we will see how we get on.

No. 2389Adated 17 September 2019 from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is a briefing note for today's meeting on the financial position of Bord na gCon in 2018.

Category B is correspondence from Accounting Officers and-or Ministers and follow up to PAC meetings, and other items for publishing. The first item under this category is No. 2301B, held over from our meeting on 11 July 2019, from Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú, Secretary General, Department of Education and Skills, dated 5 July 2019, providing clarification requested by the committee on information previously provided by the Department regarding the Protected Disclosures Act 2014. Is it agreed that we will note and publish that? Agreed.

No. 2318B is from Mr. Robert Watt, Secretary General, Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, dated 10 July 2019, responding to the committee's recommendation in Periodic Report No. 4 for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to make arrangements for a liaison or monitoring capability in respect of property acquisitions above a certain value. This arose from two third level institutions in Cork city essentially competing for the same project and driving the price up against each other, which may have resulted in extra costs to the taxpayer. Mr. Watt's reply acknowledges the point. He says there are potential risks in trying to influence bodies that are statutorily independent. However, he understands the Department will consult the Higher Education Authority, HEA, on this matter with a view to issuing a communication to all higher education institutes in due course on potential measures that can reasonably be taken by them to minimise the risk of this occurring. The Department will update the committee on developments in this matter.