Results 2,141-2,160 of 3,777 for speaker:Marc Ó Cathasaigh

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive: Financial Statements 2023 (5 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I will move on to the issue of non-compliant procurement. It is a very substantial amount. The exercise that was carried out indicates about 7%. Only about half of the procurement spent was analysed and it came up with this 7% figure. I do not know whether that adequately captures the non-compliant procurement. Is there any local aspect to this? Are there places where that level of...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive: Financial Statements 2023 (5 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: The next logical question is where are we finding higher levels of non-compliance, geographically.

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive: Financial Statements 2023 (5 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: The eye-watering scale of the money we are talking about means that even when it is reduced down to 3%, it is still a significant chunk of change. Are there sanctions within the organisation if a manager is consistently procuring goods in a non-compliant manner? Is there some way of oversight or of identifying somebody who is not adhering to these procurement procedures? Has there been any...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive: Financial Statements 2023 (5 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: A follow-on issue is particularly germane, given the scandal in scoliosis operations. At a local level, how does the HSE ensure that products or devices that go through a procurement process are adequate and comply with the relevant standards? Are there controls? We have seen a failure of controls in this high-profile instance. Will the witnesses outline what controls are in place?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Grants and Bridging Finance for Community Groups: Discussion (4 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I thank the witnesses for the their presentations. I openly admit that I am not an expert in this area in any way, shape or form, so I found the presentations really interesting and informative. The thing that stands out from a Deputy's work is that expertise in funding applications. The sports capital programme is a great example. A number of clubs will come in and they just have not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Grants and Bridging Finance for Community Groups: Discussion (4 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: It is really about helping people to put their best foot forward. The work is often there and it is just about making sure they hit all the scoring parameters in whatever is it, the X, Y and Z. I enjoyed the line about philanthropy being able to take risks because it is true. Something that prevents people further down the socioeconomic distribution from being able to access capital is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Grants and Bridging Finance for Community Groups: Discussion (4 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I like the idea that philanthropy can take risks or the organisations put themselves in that position to be able to derisk community borrowing. What about the percentage of non-performing loans? My sense is that a lot of communities may lack the capacity or confidence to take on debt in this way but once they do, and they are supported in doing that, their capacity to repay is very good. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Grants and Bridging Finance for Community Groups: Discussion (4 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I might make an assumption as well. Even when they get into payment difficulties, the engagement with the community groups as lenders is probably very good.

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (5 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: 107. To ask the Minister for Finance if, with respect to Annex III of the Reduced VAT Rates Directive (details supplied), his Department is considering the potential implications on lowering the VAT rate applied to newspapers and periodicals either on physical means of support or supplied electronically; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42189/23]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (5 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: 144. To ask the Minister for Finance if, with respect to Annex III of the Reduced VAT Rates Directive (details supplied), his Department is considering the potential implications on lowering the VAT rate applied to bicycles, including electric bicycles, and supply of services relating to the transport of passengers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42188/23]

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: That was the first question I was going to ask. The Cathaoirleach took the words out of my mouth there. I will return to the metaphor to which Deputy Murphy was alluding, in that we are trying to build a picture here. We have key pieces of the jigsaw that were hidden down the back of the couch for a while but we are still missing central pieces. We have Breda O'Keeffe who has never...

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: It is a decision not to waive that confidentiality.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I understand that.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: Mr Lynch has doubled down on the fact that this was the key moment where the tripartite agreement is finally underwritten. This is the point at which, indirectly to some extent, the taxpayer is put on the hook for €225,000. It happens in this meeting and we are blind to what happened in that meeting, notwithstanding Mr. Bakhurst saying we have one side of the account.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: How long was the meeting? Was it a ten-minute meeting or a three-hour meeting? Did we have multiple-----

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I find that difficult to comprehend.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: I am gobsmacked by that, if I am honest. The frustration is that the minuting of the meeting has not been separated out from the legal advice part of it. Whatever legal sidebars have happened in terms of RTÉ getting legal advice within that meeting, I am not sure if the committee has an interest in that or not, but I certainly have an interest in is the timeline of the over and back...

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: What I wanted to know was whether it was possible to separate out whatever those legal sidebars were from the blow by blow - what I would expect to see minuted in a regular meeting. Even to meet us halfway in that regard, we could be provided with a redacted version that would give us a blow-by-blow account. However, Mr. Bakhurst is saying he has not read the note. We cannot tell a start...

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: There is a continued frustration on the part of this committee. As I said, we are looking for the pieces of the jigsaw, some of which are getting stuffed down the back of the couch, for us to build a picture on behalf of the taxpayer, which is what we are interested in doing here. There is an element of the return of the circus here this morning. I know other committee members share my...

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): Discussion (12 Oct 2023)

Marc Ó Cathasaigh: This committee deliberately gave breathing space at the start of this Dáil term because we had anticipated that report in particular being completed, which would have allowed us to interrogate, in a meaningful way, that corporate culture we are looking to get to.