Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Everybody is welcome. I am pleased to welcome Ms Suzanne Keatinge, CEO of Dóchas, and Ms Caoimhe de Barra, CEO of Trócaire. A special welcome to Ms Gloria Soma, director of the Titi Foundation in South Sudan, who is joining us from Sudan. I also welcome Mr. Dominic MacSorley, CEO of Concern Worldwide, who is no stranger to development matters. They are very welcome to our meeting. It is most timely because this is the last week of our parliamentary session. When we come back in late August or early September, thoughts and minds will firmly turn towards budgetary matters. I felt it was important that we had an opportunity to have this engagement prior to that.

The format of the meeting is that we will hear an opening statement from the witnesses which, we understand, will be delivered by Ms Keatinge, before going into a question-and-answer session with members of the committee. As we are quite time limited due to Covid restrictions, I ask that witnesses be concise and conscious of the time constraints when initially addressing our committee. I ask members to be concise in order to allow all members an opportunity to ask questions.

I remind witnesses of the long-standing parliamentary practice that we should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make any person readily identifiable or engage otherwise in speech that might be regarded as damaging to the good name of any person or entity. Therefore, if statements are potentially defamatory in relation to an identified person or entity, you will be directed to discontinue your remarks. It is imperative that any direction be complied with.

For witnesses attending remotely outside of the Leinster House campus, there are some limitations to parliamentary privilege and, as such, you may not benefit from the same level of immunity from legal proceedings as a witness who might be physically present does. Witnesses participating in the committee session from a jurisdiction outside of the State are advised to be mindful of the domestic law and how it may apply to evidence given.

Members are reminded of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against any person outside the House or an official either by name or in such a way as to make that person identifiable. I remind members that they are only allowed to participate in the meeting if they are physically located either in the Leinster House complex here or the conference centre where the Dáil and Seanad are meeting in plenary session today.

For anybody watching this meeting online, some Oireachtas Members and witnesses are accessing the meeting remotely due to these unprecedented circumstances. As a large number of people are attending the meeting remotely, I ask that everybody bear with us in the event that any technical difficulties may interrupt or in any way adversely affect our proceedings.

I am very pleased to call on Ms Keatinge to make the opening statement. I acknowledge the timing of her letter in today's edition of The Irish Times, which made for very good early morning reading for me and, I am sure, members of our committee. The timing is also significant, having regard to last night's vote in our neighbouring jurisdiction, the UK, on a cut to the international development assistance budget. Without pre-empting anything that might be said in this meeting, I am sure committee members will join with me in warning our Government not to envisage a similar type of cut in our budget in the autumn. I note the reason or excuse given was because of Covid.

I take the view that precisely because of Covid-19 and how it affects developing world, poor and disadvantaged areas, it would be a reason to ensure an increase in our budget rather than a cut, as we have seen in our neighbouring jurisdiction. In any event we will have an opportunity over the next hour or more to detail some of the issues. I am very pleased to call on Ms Keatinge to lead off with her opening statement.