John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Are we in danger of spreading ourselves too thinly as a committee by extending our remit and losing focus on what the committee was established to do in the first place? Its function is to hold the Departments to account on a regular basis and directing the time and schedule we have to that end. I warn against extending artificially our remit to bodies that, frankly, do not come under our jurisdiction and which never have. We should be cautious about that. I understand the Chairman has asked the clerk to put together a note. I, as one member, have serious reservations. The priority for the committee is to deal with Departments and not to get sucked into areas that are secondary when it comes to the committee's jurisdiction.