Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

The European Union is working on a new directive on the role of auditors. A consultation phase is under way at present and that will establish Europe-wide regulations governing the role of auditors and that will obviously apply here.

The second part of the question related to the way in which the Government engages firms of auditors or obtains financial advice. I do not disagree with the Deputy and he will find that as time progresses, the Government's approach to the securing of financial advice will reflect more the sentiments expressed in the question than it will reflect the practices of the past.

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