Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 6 October 2016

Public Accounts Committee

Business of Committee

11:00 am

Photo of Mary Lou McDonaldMary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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I do not want to delay this meeting unduly but we need to discuss how we structure these meetings. We need an examination that is evidence based and we need a mechanism to check clear conflicts in testimony or new material that is introduced. Our job is to examine this report. People will analyse it, give their views or position on matters but it hinges on the documentation and facts presented to the committee. Although our last meeting was enlightening I do not think we adequately allowed, or at least not to my satisfaction, for some of the matters raised by NAMA to be tested in the second part of the meeting, for instance, by comment from the Comptroller and Auditor General. There were other issues that got through the net which I wonder if they were factually accurate. It is my strong view that there are several witnesses we need to hear from arising from the NAMA evidence, who are not on the witness list. I am talking about PIMCO and Lazard. It is not a massive list but we could not reasonably say that we made a full examination of this report without hearing from them. I am anxious that they would be called. I am happy to return to the issue but I want to signal that strongly.