Mr. John A. Moran:

The first and most important part of protecting against the situation the Deputy described is the introduction of whistleblower protection.

This has been done by the Department since I took over and our policy in this regard is published on our website. In effect, we went ahead of the broader regime that is being introduced across the entire system under the direction of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. We have our own system in place which can be modified, as required, to fit in with the general model.

The second issue the Deputy raises relates to what was largely the focus of my opening statement, namely, the creation of structures within the Department which encourage debate and peer review of everything we do. That is happening not just at management advisory committee level but right down through the entire system. It involves staff at senior and junior levels, including a large number of people who are new to the Department. That process is going a long way to addressing the concerns the Deputy has raised.