Neasa Hourigan (Dublin Central, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe and thank him for making himself available to meet the committee at its first public meeting. The first pre-budget session with the Minister is a welcome opportunity for the committee to discuss budgetary strategy and the important budgetary decisions being made against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic and the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union.

Before we commence formal proceedings, I wish to advise that any witnesses giving evidence from a location outside of the parliamentary precincts to note that the constitutional protections afforded to witnesses attending to give evidence before committees may not extend to them. There is no clear guidance on whether or to what extent the evidence given is covered by absolute privilege of a statutory nature. Persons giving evidence from another jurisdiction should also be mindful of their domestic statutory regime. If witnesses are directed by the committee to cease giving evidence on a particular matter they must respect that direction. I would also like to remind members that the meeting is limited to two hours due to the current Covid-19 guidelines. This is to ensure the safety of members, witnesses and secretarial staff. We have agreed on speaking slots and times and I ask members to remain within these agreed times. I also remind members that other committee members will be attending this room. I ask them to vacate their seats at a reasonable time and use the available wipes to clean their seating area. This will allow the next set of committee members to arrive and take a seat.