Results 11,441-11,460 of 20,094 for speaker:Brian Stanley
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: Yes, and any other State agency. I call Deputy Hourgian.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: We are considering information that came back to us from An Taisce. I welcome the information. I do not know of any member of the committee that did not welcome it. It is appropriate that any organisation receiving State funding be open to scrutiny.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: Let me continue. Some of the programmes An Taisce runs are excellent. That is a bigger political issue on all sides of the debate. I am not going to allow to be opened up here a debate between people who believe the earth is still flat and people on the other side. I am not going to go into that or allow it. The point, however, is that legitimate questions be asked. Every committee...
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: I will allow Deputy Sherlock to comment. There is a very strong debate between both sides. We do have to reduce our carbon emissions but that is a bigger issue and it is not for this chamber. There is a fair amount of political consensus in this country on it. It is a matter of how we do it. Most sensible people agree that we have to move on with it. There is no disagreement on that,...
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: Absolutely.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: As Chairman of the Committee of Public Accounts, I stand over the fact that the Deputy’s questions were fair. I do not believe that he is in any way out to undermine-----
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: -----or to damage in any way the work of An Taisce or make any false allegations against it.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: Nowhere in his contributions today or prior to today have I heard him do so.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: Our job is to examine the finances-----
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: -----and answer questions-----
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: There are Accounting Officers from a range of bodies who were questioned robustly here in the not-too-distant past. I do not believe anybody would say there was a desire to undermine the bodies they were representing. It is simply a matter of dealing with public money. Our dealing with that does not mean we are trying to undermine any organisation.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: I am not------
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: Just a second. As Chair of the committee I am not going to lecture individual members of the committee about what words they can or cannot use-----
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: The Deputy has to look at things around the discussion. I am not allowing this to be turned into a broad political debate. We looked for information. We got it. It has been welcomed. It has to do with the finances. It is legitimate. Every member of the committee who spoke as I recall has welcomed the good work done by An Taisce across a number of projects. I call Deputy Sherlock.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: I have to ensure that each member of this committee, regardless of who he or she represents, whichever party, be it Independents or anybody else, has the same opportunity to ask legitimate questions. Some wriggle room may be given but in general for the members here, whether from the Opposition benches or the Government benches, I will adhere to that. I will acknowledge that. The Deputy...
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: I thank everybody. Hopefully that clarifies matters. The fourth item is the work programme.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: The minutes reflect many of the issues that have been raised in this Chamber.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: In the normal course of events it would wait for the correspondence to come before the committee. I am aware of that. I was contacted in regard to it and I suggested that the correspondence come to the meeting here. Deputy Murphy has come as well, and that is fair enough. However, in fairness we should wait until it comes before the committee. It will be before us next Thursday.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: We will send a letter to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform asking it to comment on the ongoing matters in regard to this issue.
- Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (3 Feb 2022)
Brian Stanley: I thank Deputy Murphy for that. Next week, on 10 February we will examine the expenditure on the national broadband plan with National Broadband Ireland, NBI, and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. Please note, as previously agreed we will engage with NBI, and this is the part members need to watch, from 9.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and with the Department from 1.30...