Results 22,661-22,680 of 26,653 for speaker:John McGuinness

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Will whoever has mobile telephones check them, please? There has been considerable interference since the beginning of the meeting and we do not know where it is coming from. Please check your telephones. If you leave them on the desk they will continue to interfere with the transmission of the meeting even though they may not be turned on.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Can Mr. Dowling give some assurance to Deputy Connaughton and the committee regarding how these queries are being dealt with? Can they be dealt with more efficiently in view of the fact that these payments have been made?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: I call Deputy Nash.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Before I call on the next speaker, Deputy Naughten asked about the five authorities that have not sent back their reports. Can the Secretary General name the five local authorities that have not responded?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Can we get those names?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: How many local authorities report altogether? What is the total number of reports expected?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Only five out the 34 did not report, but the Secretary General cannot name those five.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: If those five are contained in the report, it should be possible to identify the five in question before the end of this meeting. Deputy Connaughton asked about the household charge and raised the issue of payments being paid but letters still being issued seeking payment. It seems to me that citizens who have complied and paid are being put to great inconvenience to clarify that payment...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: May we publish Ms Tallon's statement?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: We should continue with this line of questioning when the Secretary General comes before us.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: I ask the members, witnesses and those in the Visitors' Gallery to turn off their telephones because the interference affects the sound quality of the transmission of the meeting. It applies particularly to those who leave their telephones on the desk in front of the microphone, which picks up the noise and means the proceedings cannot be transmitted properly. I ask members and witnesses to...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Will the officials from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform introduce themselves?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 16 - Central Government Funding of Local Authorities (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Before I call on the Comptroller and Auditor General to introduce today's business, I should outline how the committee proposes to deal with Vote 25 and the chapters that relate to the Department in the Comptroller and Auditor General's report. At a previous meeting with the Accounting Officer, because of the wide breadth of the issues that fall under the remit of Ms Tallon, the meeting went...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: I join members in complimenting Mr. Ted McEnery, all of the staff, and the Comptroller and Auditor General. The substantial amount of work that went into the report and the tight timeframe were mentioned during the launch. I would also say to members that the examination of witnesses during the process was key to the information in the report. The examination was very positive and made it...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: This was an issue that was raised previously with the Secretary General regarding the audit of local government and the proposals at the group meeting to discuss the possibility of the amalgamation of the Comptroller and Auditor General's office and the Local Government Audit Service generally. We can discuss that at today's meeting.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: The Minister launched a document recently that suggested there would be a different audit office and procedure relative to local government, which runs against the belief I have that they should all be together in one office. It is a policy matter but we can still discuss it with the Secretary General and perhaps the Comptroller and Auditor General.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: Deputy McCarthy has been replaced by Deputy Keaveney. I thank Deputy McCarthy for his contribution to the Committee of Public Accounts and I welcome Deputy Keaveney. I wish him well in his work on the committee. Are the minutes of the meeting of 22 November 2012 agreed? Agreed. We will review the minute of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform on our report on the VAT charge on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Application Numbers (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if applications for student grants to Student Universal Support Ireland will be granted without delay in view of the fact that students need to sit exams and cannot do so until they have received their grant and paid their fees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54868/12]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme Applications (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if an application for a student grant has been processed in respect of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54870/12]

Written Answers — Department of Health: Home Help Service (6 Dec 2012)

John McGuinness: To ask the Minister for Health if further home help hours will be allocated in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; if he will expedite a response as a matter of urgency [54823/12]