Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

An official in any Department would not go before the Committee of Public Accounts on policy matters either. We do not fully agree but I understand what the Deputy is saying. The CEO of the HEA can and should advise the Minister on policy issues. As a result of some of the improvements we have made to the Bill we have also included the funding issue. The CEO of the HEA can be invited before any other Oireachtas committee for discussions and debates. I know the CEOs of the HEA, SOLAS and probably Education and Training Boards Ireland have come before the Oireachtas joint committee for policy discussions. There is no issue at all with this. This is not meant to be a significant policy development on my part. It simply replicates a standard provision with regard to CEOs of State agencies. It is not novel. The Deputy may not agree with it for any CEO of a State agency. This is a broader point the Deputy may wish to make. This is replicating what is the norm with regard to CEOs of State agencies going before the Committee of Public Accounts. As the Deputy has rightly identified, it is the Committee of Public Accounts alone.