Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for being here today. I was fortunate enough to head up a charity for almost seven years and I know the value of the work the regulator does in sustaining the public's trust in the charity sector as a whole and allowing charities to continue doing the good work they do. I thank it for that. In May of this year, the regulator issued a statement urging charities to be more vigilant in identifying conflicts of interest. By their nature, such conflicts are sometimes difficult to identify and more difficult to pin down than financial irregularities. The regulator issued guidance to the boards of charities on how to manage such conflicts of interest. Apart from issuing that guidance, is the regulator being proactive in identifying conflicts of interest that have the capacity to seriously undermine the work and credibility of charities? It is a significant area that needs forensic scrutiny. The witnesses have outlined the resources available to the office so I know that may not be possible. However, to restore the public's faith in the charities sector as a whole and to strengthen it into the future, that needs to be central to the work the regulator does. Do the witnesses have any views on that?