There is a fine graveyard in the Galway one, which I know is well kept.

A strange controversy erupted last week regarding the Committee of Public Accounts hearing into spending at Áras an Uachtaráin, with members of the Government and the Dáil saying the hearing would be "unconstitutional". Several interesting points have emerged from the hearing this morning, however, including details of an annual allowance of €317,000 paid to the President each year which is not subject to audit and the fact that an audit committee set up in 2014 to monitor spending did not even meet for three years.

The Committee of Public Accounts is a Dáil committee only and it is inappropriate while it is in the middle of a debate for us to have a discussion in the Seanad.

I will call for a specific debate about freedom of information.

The Senator might find another way to do it. The Committee of Public Accounts is a specific Dáil committee dealing with this issue. In my view it is still sub judice, it is hearing evidence and it may go on for some time. When it is over we might be able to have a debate on it.

I understand, but my point is about the fake political theatre that erupted last week around this issue.

The President should be above this debate, and the Office of the President can be dealt with, but the Senator should find another way.

The Constitution states the President shall not be answerable to either House of the Oireachtas or to any court for the exercise and performance of the powers and functions of his office or for any act done or purporting to be done by him in the exercise or performance of these powers and functions. It is clear that it does not say that the President is not answerable to the Oireachtas under any circumstances. It says he or she is not answerable for the exercise and performance of the powers and functions which are specifically mentioned in the relevant article in the Constitution. My point is that it was nonsense for anyone to say examining spending from the Central Fund by the Áras would be unconstitutional. Why then did the likes of Deputies Micheál Martin, Catherine Murphy and Alan Kelly wade in to defend the Government's attempts to prevent this scrutiny on the grounds that it might interfere with the ongoing election? Surely, that is the point. Surely, voters have a right to know in advance of an election. One can imagine what would happen if the Committee of Public Accounts suspended all scrutiny by the Fine Gael-led Government in the run up to the next general election on the grounds that it might impact on the result. Fianna Fáil and the Labour Party would jump up and down in indignation about such a conspiracy.

What we saw last week was political theatre and hypocrisy. There is almost universal agreement that the Presidency should be made subject to freedom of information legislation. All parties in the Dáil are on record as supporting it. If the Government and Opposition leaders consider it unconstitutional for the Committee of Public Accounts to probe spending in the Áras, they must consider that any attempt by the Oireachtas to bring the Áras within the remit of freedom of information would also be unconstitutional. Why have they not made that point before now? The simple reason is that no one really believes this line about unconstitutionality. It was cooked up at the last minute because of unease regarding details of Áras spending in the run up to the election, which the political class has already done its best to stitch up in favour of the incumbent.

I told Senator Mullen earlier, but he continued on, that this matter is sub judice before the Committee of Public Accounts. The Constitution sets out certain parameters and-----

When €7 million is being spent annually on the President, how can we not have accountability?

That is not a matter for us. It is a matter for the Committee of Public Accounts to make a decision on. It may be that when the committee has decided, it could be a matter for debate on another day.