Results 7,741-7,760 of 34,663 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: That is fine. If this contract is secured by Enet, then the State has a stake. Is that correct?

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: I note the wording used by Mr. McCarthy. He stated Enet is a "key subcontractor" but not the only contractor.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: Enet, therefore, is not the only subcontractor. I just wanted to clear up that issue. The last aspect of this matter concerns the national broadband plan. It started in 2015 with 850,000 houses. Today, we heard Eir has already taken 300,000 houses out of that original figure because it can do it commercially. The company has also stated that it is now replacing some of its old network...

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: I will pose that question to the Department.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: They were all very shy.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: Contract negotiations are proceeding on the potential benefit for whichever company gets the contract and the State aid. As the process continues, some premises are being removed from the being covered in the plan. I do not like using the word "cherry picking" but as we go along companies are taking the most commercial or the best prospects from what was initially envisaged in the original...

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: It is at the stage where the costs are going to be higher, as well as the State aid, the smaller the numbers involved get. That is something the Department will have to configure and not Enet.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: One of the witnesses made a good point on the MANs and the private fibre networks as well as the mobile network. It was stated that "all existing and planned commercial investment should be taken into consideration prior to any State intervention into a commercial market". We might advise the Minister to find out what exactly is in any contract before he signs it. There might be fewer...

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: That is correct.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: If we turn back the clock two years, there were 850,000 houses involved. The numbers have almost halved now. That is an observation and not a conclusion. We have now completed our-----

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: Yes, please do.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: That is okay.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: That complaint was stated here today and we asked for a copy of that correspondence. Mr. McCarthy will be aware of that. We will also contact the Department separately. I do know if it has been requested already under freedom of information legislation. I doubt it.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: There was at least public acknowledgement today as to the identity of the complainant.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: It was stated earlier and I will not repeat the name. It is on the record.

Public Accounts Committee: Enet (14 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: I thank all of the witnesses for coming and I apologise that the meeting has continued so late into the day. It was a long day and I thank the witnesses for bearing with us. Is it agreed that the clerk requests any follow-up documentation and carries out any agreed actions arising from the meeting? Agreed. We will now adjourn. If confirmed, we will be meeting representatives of the...

Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Bill 2017: Second Stage [Private Members] (12 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Bill 2017 introduced by my colleagues, Deputies Barry Cowen and Dara Calleary. Essentially, this Bill, if passed will ensure an automatic Comptroller and Auditor General review of capital projects is triggered where costs rise above a set amount, which amount will be determined during later Stages of the...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (7 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: We have a quorum. We are joined today by the Comptroller and Auditor General, Mr. Seamus McCarthy, as a permanent witness to the committee. He is joined by Ms Maureen Mulligan, deputy director of audit. Apologies have been received from Deputies Deering and Farrell. The first item on the agenda is the minutes of the meeting of 31 January, which was our last meeting. Are those minutes...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (7 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: Yes. It is displayed on the screen. We wrote well in advance to the National Development Finance Agency and the Office of Government Procurement to ascertain their roles in respect of the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board. Depending on the response, we were to decide whether to meet them. We had sought the information well in advance of the meeting and received this reply...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (7 Feb 2019)

Seán Fleming: Yes.