Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish everybody a happy new year. I tabled a Private Members’ motion in May 2021 regarding the search and rescue contract. At that time, I warned that the procurement process was certainly questionable. Since then, I have sought for the business case to be released in order that we would understand how we have moved from four helicopters to three, and why a fixed-wing aircraft is now being included. I warned that the business case was put together by Frazer-Nash with KPMG. Frazer-Nash is a subsidiary of Babcock, which is now merging with CHC, the incumbent contractors. I have been refused the business case time and again. I wrote over Christmas to the Cathaoirleach, Ceann Comhairle, Taoiseach, Tánaiste, Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and the Chairs of both the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications and the Committee of Public Accounts. I got what I regard as an earth-shattering reply, which I believe the Cathaoirleach was involved in, with the Ceann Comhairle. It stated that a committee of this House is entitled to see all documentation it requests and is entitled to have a Secretary General come before it and lay documents before the committee in order that we can understand and provide the oversight that is required. This spills over into legislation, given we are currently looking at the air navigation Bill. Woe betide that we can have any sort of amendment. Why is that? There is no oversight. The issue of oversight is one on which we are losing the public. Democracy is falling apart right around the world because we are not able to stand up and demand oversight.

I called yesterday on, and got the agreement of, the transport committee to get the business case. I believe we should bring in KPMG, Frazer-Nash, the Air Corps and everybody who was involved in the generation of this procurement process to find out exactly how we finished up having only three helicopters on the pre-qualification questionnaire, PQQ, that went out on 24 December, Christmas Eve. Where are we going with this?