78.— (1) A member of the Ombudsman Commission nominated by it for the purpose shall, whenever required to do so by the Committee of Public Accounts, give evidence to that Committee on—

(a) the regularity and propriety of the transactions recorded, or required to be recorded, in any book or other record of account subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General that the Commission is required by this Act to prepare,

(b) the economy and efficiency of the Commission in the use of its resources,

(c) the systems, procedures and practices employed by the Commission for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of its operations, and

(d) any matter affecting the Commission referred to in—

(i) a special report of the Comptroller and Auditor General under section 11(2) of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993, or

(ii) any other report of the Comptroller and Auditor General that is laid before Dáil Éireann in so far as the report relates to a matter specified in any of paragraphs (a) to (c).

(2) A member of the Ombudsman Commission who gives evidence under this section shall not—

(a) question or express an opinion on the merits of any policy of the Government or a Minister of the Government or on the merits of the objectives of such policy, or

(b) provide information that might facilitate the commission of an offence, prejudice a criminal investigation or prosecution or jeopardise the safety of a person.