Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)

I thank members and witnesses for participating in today's meeting. Anyone joining remotely needs to do so from within the Leinster House complex, as they know. We will now proceed with our consideration of the 2024 Supplementary Estimate for Vote 32. To discuss the matter today, I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment with special responsibility for business, employment and retail, Deputy Emer Higgins, who is accompanied by her officials. I express my sympathy and the sympathy of everybody else with the Minister, Deputy Burke, on the sad loss of his mother, which was a shock to him and everybody, last week.

Before we start, I wish to explain some limitations to parliamentary privilege and the practices of the Houses as regards references witnesses may make to other persons in their evidence. They are protected by absolute privilege in respect of the presentation they make to the committee. This means they have an absolute defence against any defamation action for anything they say at the meeting. However, they are expected not to abuse this privilege. It is my duty as Chair to ensure the privilege is not abused. If their statements are potentially defamatory in relation to an identifiable person or entity, I will direct them to discontinue their remarks and it is imperative that they comply with any such direction. I invite the Minister of State, Deputy Higgins, to make her opening statement on the Supplementary Estimates. As normal, documentation for the meeting has been circulated on MS Teams.