TENSE EXCHANGES AT THE DÁIL COMMITTEE

In a testy series of exchanges this week, HSE boss Tony O’ Brien addressed the Public Accounts Committee about the inconsistencies in evidence previously given by the HSE on the Grace case:

Alan Kelly (Labour): ‘Has Mr. O’Brien confidence that the information being provided to him by this HSE division has always been given to him in an accurate fashion at the time at which it was given?’ Tony O’ Brien (pictured): ‘I will answer the deputy this way, if I may. If the deputy had been sitting in a room with me yesterday when I discovered what I discovered about H3, I would have been doing a fairly good impersonation of what the media says the Deputy is like. Fairly irate at times, shall we say. It is intended as a compliment.’ ++++++++

O’ Brien: ‘The firm of solicitors to which I referred earlier was in contact with An Garda Síochána by letter on 6 March 2015.’ Josepha Madigan (Fine Gael, pictured): ‘So it is exactly the day after the protected disclosure was made to the previous PAC. Does that seem coincidental to Mr O’Brien?’

O’Brien: ‘There are only so many days in the year, but what I can tell the deputy is that there were discussions…’