Mr. Tony O'Brien:

I will resume at the third paragraph where I stopped speaking.

The 2011 Appropriation Accounts have recently been published by the Comptroller and Auditor General. In this regard, I am concerned as to the appropriateness of attending the Committee of Public Accounts to discuss 2012 when the year is not closed and there are no accounts under examination. In addition, I am further concerned that as late as yesterday afternoon a substantial draft document prepared by the Committee of Public Accounts was received by the Health Service Executive, the existence of which I had not previously been aware. This is not a report of the Comptroller and Auditor General. This document, which was provided to us by the clerk to the committee, contains new information that raises questions that appear to be substantially policy related. As the committee is aware, the Health Service Executive cannot engage in dialogue on policy related matters pursuant to Part 4, section 21(9) of the Health Act 2004.

If requested the HSE can work with the committee to establish the factual accuracy of the draft report provided to it yesterday afternoon. We would require reasonable time for this input which would be normal practice in our work with the Comptroller and Auditor General, the Joint Committee on Health and Children and this committee.

The HSE will continue to work actively to support the Committee of Public Accounts in its accountability to the Oireachtas for the expenditure of public funds. We will also continue to work collaboratively with the Comptroller and Auditor General. The HSE since 2010 to date has attended ten meetings of the Committee of Public Accounts and 25 meetings of the Joint Committee on Health and Children.

As Accounting Officer I am happy to attend the committee and provide all relevant information in support of the committee in fulfilling its terms of reference.