Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

The Government is there to make decisions. Deputies Flanagan and Higgins asked why the committee was not part of the legislation. We dealt with this issue at length on Committee Stage. Most sides of the House would accept that there is an excessive number of committees. Entrenching the existence of a committee in legislation is not a desirable way to go at a time when we are talking about reforming the numbers of committees. In addition, there is clearly not all-party agreement on the character of this committee. Some argue for a full committee, while others argue for a sub-committee of the existing Oireachtas Committee on Finance and the Public Service.

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