Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

Regarding the cost of the Moriarty tribunal and the way it operates, it has a different modus operandi from other tribunals as it keeps the need for witnesses to appear and public hearings, and the associated costs, to a minimum. It is doing things quite differently under its sole member. It has been quite effective and has been doing detailed and complex work to get to the bottom of matters for many years. It is to the credit of the sole member that he has an arrangement in place which is mindful of the fact that he wants to conduct those proceedings as cost effectively as possible. The size of his team compares very favourably with the size of other teams in other tribunals.

Part of the background to the issue is also the importance of trying to keep the same personnel in place, given the amount of work which had been done, rather than the possibility of bringing in new personnel should people leave on the basis that the fee had not been examined since 1997. All of those considerations came into play. My Department has been very open, honest and straightforward in explaining the miscommunication which took place between those who set the fee and the circumstances in which information on it was conveyed to the Moriarty tribunal. It has stood over the fact that it was an agreed fee and confirmed that when it saw a discrepancy between the Moriarty tribunal and other tribunals, it sought the advice of the Attorney General. In all circumstances, he gave the advice he did and that gives a full explanation of the situation.

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