Mr. Seamus McCarthy:

No. That was one of the reasons I undertook the special report. I felt that it was important that the information be brought to the committee so that the committee's view could be ascertained.

In some areas, there is a statutory requirement or a Department of Public Expenditure and Reform requirement that accounts be completed by a certain date. That does not apply in the third level sector. The HEA has not specified target dates for completion and submission of audited financial statements. There is scope for that to be done but I cannot do it. Obviously, on any occasion the audit has to be complete and correct before it can be finished and imposing a deadline by which it must be done can be problematic.

I would say that in the whole sector where there has been a very particular difficulty has been the National College of Art and Design and I reported separately a number of years ago on the particular problems there. That college is still trying to recover from that position and its financial statements are still well behind.