Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan has not ruled out taking up a role with Trinity College Dublin if asked again.
Dr Holohan and the Secretary General of the Department of Health, Robert Watt appeared before the Dail’s Health Committee on Wednesday to face questioning about Dr Holohan’s now abandoned secondment to Trinity.
Asked if there is a chance of his taking up a role in the university sector, Dr Holohan said: "When I saw the way that the concerns that were being expressed in public were going, I thought it was important that I made an early decision that I would not proceed in the role.
"My ambition was to remain in the public service.
"That was my motivation.”
When asked by Fianna Fail TD John Lahard if he could be persuaded to think again about the Trinity role, Dr Holohan said nobody thus far has sought to persuade him.
But added: “It wasn’t a no.”
In an explosive exchange between Sinn Fein’s health spokesman David Cullinane and Mr Watt, Mr Watt revealed Health Minister Stephen Donnelly was not aware of the €2 million funding details for Dr Holohan’s job despite going on RTE's Morning Ireland about the controversy.
Mr Watt said that the funding details were not worked out but several TDs argued that in his letter of intent to Trinity College, Mr Watt “committed” that the Department of Health would fund the role.
He said Trinity "made it clear that they weren't in a position to fund the position" but were "enthusiastic" about it.
Dr Holohan was to have an open-ended secondment, paid by the Department of Health, via the Health Research Board and could also engage in private work.
Mr Cullinane said: “I have to say Mr Watt, this is breathtaking arrogance, that a Secretary General would sign off on an annual €2 million without seeking any approval whatsoever from a Minister from Government.
"You are committing €2 million funding from the HRB to TCD in a letter that you did not get any ministerial approval for, that you did not inform the minister of, that you did not inform this committee about.
“That you think you have the authority to spend potentially €20 million of taxpayers money without any ministerial approval, to actually commit to it in writing to a third level institution and not even to inform the Minister on the issue.”
The Taoiseach has previously said that he was unaware that Trinity College was offered €2 million ringfenced funding arrangement as part of the secondment.
Mr Watt also told the Committee that only he, Dr Holohan and someone from HR was aware of plans for the CMO to step down and take up a job in Trinity because he did not “want it to be leaked that the CMO was moving on.”
He added: “Obviously with the benefit of hindsight we should have done [things] differently.”
Mr Cullinane said Mr Watt’s approach “smacked of arrogance” and that he “lost the run” of himself.
The secondment was "to give effect to the clear intention of the government", Mr Watt said.
Mr Cullinane added: "You are not going to take me for a fool.”
Mr Watt said he did not accept Mr Cullinane’s characterisation and admitted that Minister Donnelly did not express regret that he wasn’t informed of the full details.
Fianna Fáil TD Marc MacSharry accused Mr Watt of “retro engineering a position for somebody and seeking to bounce the Government into it until there was pandemonium in the Dáil about it,” and said “this to me is corruption by any objective analysis.”
He said: “In the Minister’s [Donnelly] own words and I’m sorry to say it, ‘Tony wanted a new challenge.’”
Mr MacSharry added: “And the taxpayers’ was prepared to dig deep, €2 million and deliver it, scandalous.”
Mr Watt said he rejected MacSharry referring to the CMO and himself as “you people.”
Chairman of the Health Committee, Sean Crowe said he would strike the word “corruption” from the record.
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READ MORE: Top civil servant denies involvement in botched Dr Tony Holohan appointment to Trinity
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