Deputy Mary Lou McDonald- speech from 26 Apr 2022

The Minister for Health and the General Secretary of the Department of Health, Mr. Robert Wath, have both refused to attend the Eireachtas Committee on Finance. Furthermore, the General Secretary of the Department of Health has failed to furnish that committee with documents that it has requested. In fact, he has not even given them a courtesy of a response. I have in my hand a copy of the latest letter from that committee to the Secretary-General in which the committee chair notes the lack of engagement, the apparent unwillingness to discuss and clarify matters of significant public concern. Taoiseach, I put it to you earlier and I want to put it to you again that this is just unacceptable behaviour. It is unacceptable that ministers of government, but I want a substantive answer to this question. Will the Taoiseach ensure that Robert Wath, the highest paid civil servant in the land, is not allowed to frustrate the work of the Finance Committee? I want a confirmation of that from the Taoiseach and that he will, if necessary, intervene. Maybe the time is up. Taoiseach. First of all, I just have to again say to the Deputy, you keep on saying the Minister for Health has refused. The Minister for Health publicly this morning said there is no question but that he will go before a committee. He has said there is no question of him refusing to go before a committee of the House. He has said there is no question but that he will go before the Finance Committee or any other committee that asks him to go before it. He has helpfully suggested that there is an external review which you asked for, which members in this House asked for an external independent review. So it always moves on, of course. When that happens, he believes a better conversation could be had before the committee when that is concluded. That is all. That is all. No, in terms of a public servant, I do not like the witch hunt nature of the approach that has been adopted. There certainly has a ring about it. I just think that needs to be watched as well. I think in relation to Mr Wall, I am not aware of who has written to him or whether people have written separately, but I pursue that issue. No, please, we are out of time, please. Please, other people's questions will not be reached. This goes to the heart of how we do our business, Cangorla, as an Oireachtas, and it is unacceptable that any civil servant, Robert Watt or anyone else, believes that they can frustrate the work of an Oireachtas committee. That is unacceptable. It is completely unacceptable that anybody would try to interfere with the proper workings of the House. It is also unfair and unacceptable that the time criteria set out would be frustrated either. So all of it is unacceptable. Well, I think it is of a different scale and order. Well, it is. Respectfully, Cangorla. Yes. Respectfully. Your point is valid. Your point is valid. But nonetheless, let's all lead by example.