Catherine Ardagh (Dublin South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It was an honour to serve with the Cathaoirleach on the foreign affairs committee. I offer him my congratulations on his important role. The late Jim Mitchell from Fine Gael and my father, Seán Ardagh, served on the public accounts committee during the DIRT inquiry. It set the stage for the public accounts committee and its importance since that time. We have had some great members. I was not a member of it during the previous term, as I was in the Seanad. The work that the public accounts committee does is important, and it is probably one of the most important committees. It is great to see the Cathaoirleach at the helm of it.

We each would have a little shopping list of various State accounts we would like to shine a light on, as my colleague stated. Deputy McAuliffe referred to the HSE. Regarding it, the State Claims Agency and the money spent on legal costs by families seeking assessments of need, we need to examine whether all of that is cost effective. There are other accounts, such as the State savings accounts. We need to look at accounts we might not have examined in the past to ensure they are working properly, accountable and have the right systems in place.

I look forward to working with the Cathaoirleach. I do not know how it works in terms of whether we put forward our shopping lists, but I am sure he and his secretariat will help us navigate our way through this committee.