Mr. Rob Wright:

I thank the Chairman. We did not hold back on advice. There are some very good people in the Department. I mean one did not have to start from scratch. In the whole Department there were people who wanted to make themselves in the face of this. There was a full engagement with everyone in the Department. I met with people at the working level right through the Department who knew they were doing something important to help Ireland get out of this. Since the crisis those people have worked their hearts out to get there.

Our advice is based on how to broaden and deepen that engagement. I think John Moran made some comments to this Parliament a few weeks ago that it was a pretty glum place to be and the finance Department was getting a real beating. There are some real important questions one should ask of public officials that were being asked. They really were not getting credit for some of the work they had done. There was advice and one did not have to start from scratch.

That said, we gave some very direct advice. If the Department had not embraced that level of advice, or is not embracing that level of advice, I would say it is not fit for purpose. It has to be ready to engage, modernise and strengthen its capacity to serve Ireland. That is what public servants are in this for - to work on issues that they know are important. They are working with a good team and are making a difference for their country. They stepped up to the plate when this crisis hit. They need to be better organised and supplemented for longer effect. I wanted to have something constructive to say about the people here as well.