Results 5,741-5,760 of 34,585 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: As soon as is practical. We have information here today that is relevant.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: That is up to the members but I do not think we can produce and publish it before the local and European elections. To publish a report next week we would have to have absolute sign-off today and that time is very tight. As Chairman, I would not recommend publishing a report of the Committee of Public Accounts on housing and broadband in the week of the elections. It was a tight and...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: We will be coming back to it. I just felt it was prudent for the committee to maintain its political independence at this time and not wade into the debate.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Is Deputy Cassells referring to a particular page?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Deputy and invite Deputy Cullinane to comment on the general issue.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: We have had no discussion on it. We have not even had a preliminary discussion.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: My view is we had Mr. Watt before the committee a number of weeks ago to talk about capital projects. We listed all of the projects, starting with the national children's hospital and on through ten major projects. We had a discussion with Mr. Watt on the national broadband plan. A member of the committee - perhaps it was the Deputy - asked him whether he thought it should go ahead. He...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: I concur with Deputy Cullinane's views. It is good to see this happen and nice to know that not everybody sings from the one hymn sheet. It is also good to see one line Department challenging another. That is useful and it is good that this information has been published. The correspondence is very important and if there is further correspondence from the Department of Communications,...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: I take that point.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: I take the Deputy's point. Clearly, the meeting was not cancelled for political reasons but because of the volume of information that had come out in the previous 24 hours. To enable us to produce a report, I thought we needed to assess the information that had only became available before we would sign off on it. The Deputy is correct. The meeting was not cancelled for political reasons-----

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: I take the Deputy's point completely.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Can the committee agree to make that request of the Committee on Budgetary Oversight, that it examine this matter?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Can we all agree?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Let Deputy Catherine Murphy finish.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Yes.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: We will ask the secretariat to put a letter together to the Committee on Budgetary Oversight covering the points that have been raised asking the committee to examine them.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: That will be a budget day matter. We will note and publish this documentation and incorporate it into our report on housing. The next item is No. 2123B, from Mr. Martin Fraser, Secretary General at the Department of the Taoiseach, dated 17 April, regarding our request for details on the whole-of-government approach to risk assessment. We will note and publish this document.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Very good. I hope they are all costed.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: Give it half an hour. The next item is No. 2124B, from Mr. Denis Breen of the Department of the Taoiseach, pointing out what the Department sees as an inaccuracy in periodic report No. 5 regarding the filing date for the Appropriation Account 2016 for the President's Establishment. Our report states that we drew attention to the fact that the Appropriation Accounts were filed in September...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (9 May 2019)

Seán Fleming: -----by the end of March, within the time. We are happy to note that and put it on the record. When we get a report back from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform regarding our periodic report, we will reconfirm the matter at that stage and discuss it again. I am delighted to see every line we write is scrutinised so closely. I am impressed. It is good. We will come back to...