Results 19,181-19,200 of 32,978 for speaker:Catherine Connolly
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: And then back to the board.
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Have issues come up in the last year separate to what we are discussing today? Have the witnesses identified other risks and issues?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Have risks been identified by the finance committee and audit committee?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Mr. Merrick should listen to me for a second. We had the former chair and vice chair before us. We had all these investigations. I have looked at all of this and the lovely language but it does not take away from the fact that that language was in place at the time and all of this still happened. One thing that jumps out is that the board was passive. I am not sure if I agree with that...
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Was Mr. Merrick a passive member of the board?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: I was on a board. It is extremely difficult for ordinary members to query things. Passiveness is somewhat mitigated by saying that the board was not getting enough information. Would Mr. Merrick accept that the board was passive?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: As chair, has Mr. Merrick gone back to ordinary board members in a meeting and said "look at what has happened under our watch"? What prevented this from coming out at board level? Has he gone back and carried out such an exercise?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: That is good and I welcome it.
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: What would really show up something would be if Mr. Merrick went back to the board and asked what stopped it in the last number of years. I gather that some people spoke out.
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Some people tried to raise issues but such a culture was created that they just could not persist with their queries or, if they did, they did so at great cost. Would Mr. Merrick accept that some people tried to raise issues on that board?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Was there a culture to reward a person and say that a question is good and that it should be dealt with in an open way? Did the board hold the CEO to account?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Clearly not.
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Reading all of these reports, the CEO was clearly not held to account. Does the CEO attend for the whole meeting?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Is that good practice?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: I am asking that. The board has not done that.
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: CEO is a very important job. I wish Dr. Keyes the best of luck in her new job. When did she take up the position?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Dr. Keyes has not done a year yet.
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: I agree with Mr. Merrick totally. It is very difficult for ordinary members on a board. They are there voluntarily. There is no backup or training. I agree with all of that. That is a failure on the part of the system and the Department of Education and Skills in not ensuring that. I appreciate that the amalgamation went through too quickly, without any backup. I know the shared...
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Will Mr. Merrick listen to my question to be helpful to him? Did the previous chair seek legal advice without Mr. Merrick being aware of it?
- Public Accounts Committee: Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board: Financial Statements 2015 (21 Feb 2019)
Catherine Connolly: Listen to me.