Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Apologies have been received from Deputies Neasa Hourigan and Sean Sherlock. I welcome everybody to the meeting. Due to the situation with Covid-19, only the clerk, support staff and I are in the committee room. Members of the committee are attending remotely from within the precincts of Leinster House. This is due to the constitutional requirement that, in order to participate in public meetings, members must be present within the confines of the place where the Parliament has chosen to sit, either Leinster House or the Convention Centre Dublin. I ask members to confirm their location before contributing to ensure that we are adhering to that constitutional requirement. The Comptroller and Auditor General, Mr. Seamus McCarthy, is a permanent witness and is attending remotely.

Today, we will engage with officials from the Higher Education Authority, HEA, to examine its 2019 financial statements. The HEA has been advised that the committee has an interest in the following matters: the recurring deficit in third level institutions; the impact of funding cuts; occasional and hourly staff in third level institutions; how funding is used to support scaling up and spin-out companies; private company funding of third level institutions and training; ring-fenced funding for Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology's Mayo campus; and the HEA's role in the University of Limerick's purchase of the former Dunnes Stores site.

We are joined remotely from outside the precincts of Leinster House by the following representatives from the HEA: Dr. Alan Wall, chief executive officer, Ms Orla Nugent, deputy chief executive officer and head of system funding, capital funding and system governance, Ms Pearl Cunningham, head of finance, and Ms Orla Christle, senior manager with responsibility for system governance. We are also joined remotely from outside the precincts of Leinster House by Mr. William Beausang, assistant secretary general of the tertiary division of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. When we begin to engage, I ask members and witnesses to mute their devices when not contributing so that we do not pick up any background noise or feedback. As usual, I remind all in attendance to ensure their mobile phones are on silent mode or switched off.

Before we start, I will explain some limitations to parliamentary privilege and the practice of the Houses regarding references witnesses may make to other persons in their evidence. The evidence of witnesses physically present or who give evidence from within the parliamentary precincts is protected, pursuant to both the Constitution and statute, by absolute privilege. However, today’s witnesses are giving their evidence remotely, from a place outside of the parliamentary precincts, and as such may not benefit from the same level of immunity from legal proceedings as a witness who is physically present does. Such witnesses have already been advised that they may think it appropriate to take legal advice on this matter.

Members are reminded of the provisions of Standing Order 218, that the committee shall refrain from inquiring into the merits of a policy or policies of the Government, or a Minister of the Government, or the merits of the objectives of such policies.

Members are also reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against any person outside the Houses or an official either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable.

To assist the broadcasting and debates services, I ask that members direct their questions to a specific witness. If the question is not directed to a specific witness, I ask the witness responding to state his or her name when first contributing. I call Mr. McCarthy to make his opening statement.