Comment

Ian Guider: Why neutered committee system won’t be getting any real powers any time soon

The restrictions put on Oireachtas committees shortchange elected respresentatives and the public

UL’s president Kerstin Mey will be unavailable to give evidence to the Oireachtas Committe after being signed off sick. Picture: Sean Curtin

Representatives from the University of Limerick who face the Public Accounts Committee on Thursday morning will be the beneficiaries of short attention spans next week as the spotlight shifts to focus on the election of Simon Harris as Taoiseach and the appointment of new Fine Gael cabinet ministers.

It will dominate headlines in the coming days, overshadowing the work of the committee asking just how on earth the university managed to lose more than €5 ...