Mr. Robert Watt:

This comes down to the definition of what is “instructed” or “asked”. We can debate this. It was my understanding that there was a view here that there was support for this initiative. Obviously, the Secretary to the Government at the time, Martin Fraser, and Dr. Holohan had discussed the matter and they had shared correspondence, and whether I was instructed or asked, I was to go and finalise, which is appropriate given my responsibilities as Secretary General of the Department – my administrative responsibilities in the Department.