Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have explained this in detail. The Senator knows my views full well. The only net point he is raising is accountability in terms of expenditure. That is fully transparent and accountable through the formal financial controls over any Vote. A tiny group of people works in the Office of the President. It is not right to compare its expenditure to the billions of euro expended by the health service on thousands of different functions.