Committee 'disappointed' at Robert Watt's failure to hand over Holohan documents

The Oireachtas finance committee has written to Mr Watt criticising his 'lack of engagement' with it over the controversy, which is now subject to two separate inquiries

Tue, 26 Apr, 2022 - 11:53

Daniel McConnell, Political Editor

A leading Oireachtas committee has expressed its “disappointment” to the secretary-general of Department of Health Robert Watt over his failure to hand over documents relating to the botched Tony Holohan secondment.

The Oireachtas finance committee has written to Mr Watt criticising his “lack of engagement” with it over the controversy, which is now subject to two separate inquiries.

In a letter to Mr Watt, seen by the Irish Examiner, committee chairman John McGuinness said he was reminding him of the deadline of last Thursday to provide all documents relating to the process and his failure to adhere to that deadline.

Mr McGuinness said the committee was disappointed that, despite extensive efforts to follow up on this correspondence by the committee’s secretariat, no response has been provided by Mr Watt to date to the requests for information or its invitation to him to attend a meeting of this committee this week.

The committee notes your lack of engagement and apparent unwillingness to discuss and clarify matters of significant public concern.

"The committee wishes to advise you, however, that it intends to continue its consideration of this matter and reiterates its request that you provide the information sought and attend its public meeting on Wednesday, 27 April 2022 at 1.30pm,” Mr McGuinness wrote.

Mr McGuinness said that as per previous correspondence, Mr Watt is again requested to supply the details no later than 12 noon on Wednesday.

Finance committee wants a full report, from Mr Watt’s department’s perspective, on the process and events that led to agreement in relation to, and Dr Tony Holohan’s subsequent decision not to proceed with, the secondment. File picture: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie

The committee is demanding details of the terms agreed in relation to the proposed secondment.

It wants a full report, from Mr Watt’s department’s perspective, on the process and events that led to agreement in relation to, and Dr Holohan’s subsequent decision not to proceed with, the secondment.

The committee is also seeking copies of any correspondence in the matter between Mr Watt and Health Minister Stephen Donnelly.

Committee members are also demanding copies of any correspondence in the matter between the Department of Health and Trinity College, Dublin, copies of any correspondence or notes in the matter internal to the Department of Health as to whether the matter was discussed at any meeting or meetings of the senior management group in the department.

If it was discussed, committee members are demanding the date or dates on which this took place and relevant extracts from the minutes of the meetings.

They are also seeking any memos or briefing notes in the matter given to Cabinet, any correspondence in the matter to the Office of An Taoiseach, the then secretary-general Martin Fraser, the minister for public expenditure and reform or secretary-general David Moloney, and any other information or observations Mr Watt considers relevant.

Mr Fraser is due before the committee on Wednesday but as revealed by the Irish Examiner last week, he has said he had no hand in the detailed arrangements of the secondment and neither did anyone else in the Department of An Taoiseach.