Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am very careful because I said it to her directly. Fortunately, the Secretary General of the Department, who was present, took a slightly more balanced view of the matter and we got some information. I have seen this type of provision being abused by officials of the State, thereby preventing the Committee of Public Accounts from doing its legitimate work. If this section replicates the existing powers, the same thing can happen. A committee could be 18 months into an inquiry when a Secretary General decides he or she does not want to co-operate and gets a Minister to sign a letter in order to close the inquiry. I am not happy with this section.