asked the Minister for Energy if his Department or any body or agency under the aegis of his Department who receive most or all of their funding from the State have significantly increased their borrowings in 1986; and if he will identify these agencies and indicate the total increase in indebtedness of these agencies between the average level of indebtedness in 1982 and the average level of indebtedness in 1986 to date.
Written Answers. - Departmental Expenditure.
33.
The only body under the aegis of my Department in receipt of most or all of its funding from the State is the Nuclear Energy Board (NEB). Most of the expenses of the NEB are grant-aided from the Vote of my Department with some costs being met from revenue earned for services rendered. Since its establishment the NEB has had no borrowing facility so the question raised by the Deputy does not arise.
34.
asked the Minister for Energy if he will provide a list of all bodies or agencies directly or indirectly under the aegis of his Department to whom nett expenditure limits have been notified by his Department and who have exceeded or expect to exceed these limits in any or each year from 1982 to 1986, inclusive; and if he will state the amounts, estimated or actual, of these excesses for each year and the total additional increase needed in his Departmental Vote to enable him to deal with these excesses.
Approved expenditure limits in respect of the four commercial State-sponsored bodies under the aegis of my Department —Electricity Supply Board, Board Gáis Éireann, Board na Móna and Irish National Petroleum Corporation— relate only to capital investment costs.
Details of these limits together with the actual out-turns are tabulated as follows.
|
1982 |
1983 |
1984 |
1985 |
1986 |
|||||
|
Alloc. |
Outturn |
Alloc. |
Outturn |
Alloc. |
Outturn |
Alloc. |
Outturn |
Alloc. |
|
|
£m |
£m |
£m |
£m |
£m |
£m |
£m |
£m |
||
|
ESB |
227.8 |
233.8 |
242.1 |
242.1 |
249.0 |
249.0 |
230.0 |
218.0 |
160.0 |
|
BGE |
51.3 |
49.4 |
22.0 |
8.1 |
17.0 |
13.0 |
12.0 |
6.4 |
37.8 |
|
BnM |
35.3 |
24.0 |
36.0 |
16.8 |
37.0 |
20.5 |
11.0 |
11.0 |
9.0 |
|
INPC |
10.0 |
10.0 |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
Apart from the expenditure of £10 million by the INPC in 1982 the foregoing is non-voted expenditure and consequently any excess would not involve a corresponding increase in my Department's Vote.
In the case of the Nuclear Energy Board which is funded by a grant-in-aid from my Department's Vote, no excess arose in the years 1982-85. Consequent on recent nuclear incidents outside the State, there is a need to provide additional resources to the Nuclear Energy Board in 1986 and this will be done by means of a Supplementary Estimate in the near future.
35.
asked the Minister for Energy if his Department or any body or agency under the aegis of his Department have sought approval for, or are considering applying for approval for, term loans or other loans to finance excess revenue expenditure.
All borrowings by agencies or bodies under the aegis of my Department require my advance approval and the consent of the Minister for Finance.
Neither my Department nor any agency or body under the aegis of my Department have sought approval for or are considering making an application for such approval, for the purposes specified by the Deputy.
36.
asked the Minister for Energy if the 1986 Vote or Votes to his Department include provision for the funding of excess expenditure over approved expenditure limits by agencies or bodies financed from his Department's Vote or Votes in respect of years prior to 1986; if so, the amount of the excess expenditure for 1982 to 1985 and the estimated projected excess for 1986; and the amount which is included under each subhead to finance this excess expenditure.
My Department's Vote for 1986 does not include any provision for the funding of excess expenditure over approved expenditure limits by agencies or bodies financed from that Vote in respect of years prior to 1986.
37.
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his Department or any body or agency under the aegis of his Department who receive most or all of their funding from the State have significantly increased their borrowings in 1986; and if he will identify these agencies and indicate the total increase in indebtedness of these agencies between the average level of indebtedness in 1982 and the average level of indebtedness in 1986 to date.
Neither the Department of Foreign Affairs nor any body under the aegis of the Department who receive most or all of their funding from the State has engaged in borrowing, in 1986 or in previous years.
38.
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will provide a list of all bodies or agencies directly or indirectly under the aegis of his Department to whom nett expenditure limits have been notified by his Department and who have exceeded or expect to exceed these limits in any or each year from 1982 to 1986, inclusive; and if he will state the amounts, estimated or actual, of these excesses for each year and the total additional increase needed in his Departmental Vote to enable him to deal with these excesses.
None of the bodies directly or indirectly under the aegis of the Department of Foreign Affairs has exceeded or expect to exceed the expenditure limits of which they have been notified by the Department in any or each year from 1982 to 1986 inclusive.
39.
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his Department or any body or agency under the aegis of his Department have sought approval for, or are considering applying for approval for, term loans or other loans to finance excess revenue expenditure.
Neither the Department of Foreign Affairs nor any body under the aegis of the Department has sought approval for, or are considering applying for approval for, terms loans or other loans to finance excess revenue expenditure.
40.
asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the 1986 Vote or Votes to his Department include provision for the funding of excess expenditure over approved expenditure limits by agencies or bodies financed from his Department's Vote or Votes in respect of years prior to 1986; if so, the amount of the excess expenditure for 1982 to 1985 and the estimated projected excess for 1986; and the amount which is included under each subhead to finance this excess expenditure.
The 1986 Votes of the Department of Foreign Affairs include no provision for the funding of excess expenditure over approved expenditure limits by bodies financed from the Department's Votes in respect of the years prior to 1986.
42.
asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if his Department or any body or agency under the aegis of his Department who receive most or all of their funding from the State have significantly increased their borrowings in 1986; and if he will identify these agencies and indicate the total increase in indebtedness of these agencies between the average level of indebtedness in 1982 and the average level of indebtedness in 1986 to date.
None of the bodies or agencies of the kind referred to in the Deputy's question which come under the aegis of my Department have significantly increased their borrowings in 1986.
43.
asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he will provide a list of all bodies or agencies directly or indirectly under the aegis of his Department to whom nett expenditure limits have been notified by his Department and who have exceeded or expect to exceed these limits in any or each year from 1982 to 1986, inclusive; and if he will state the amounts, estimated or actual, of these excesses for each year and the total additional increase needed in his Departmental Vote to enable him to deal with these excesses.
Limerick East): I have set out in the following table cases where, in the period 1982-85, it was necessary to provide for additional expenditure by bodies, or agencies, under the aegis of my Department. I would stress that in each case approval for the additional expenditure was obtained, including, where necessary approval of the Dáil, by way of Supplementary Estimate. I have included all cases where there was an excess over the Exchequer allocations included in the Department's Estimate and the public capital programme.
In each year, 1982 to 1985, a surplus was surrendered to the Exchequer by the parent Department of these bodies-agencies. The surplus was greater than the additional expenditure and accordingly the increases did not give rise to an increase in the Department's overall planned expenditure.
|
Year |
Agency |
Additional Expenditure |
|
£000 |
||
|
1982 |
CTT |
380 |
|
Irish Steel Limited |
25,000 |
|
|
National Enterprise Agency Limited |
83 |
|
|
1983 |
Institute for Industrial Research and Standards |
474 |
|
Min Fheir (1959) Teoranta |
300 |
|
|
(Provision to meet closure costs) |
||
|
National Film Studios of Ireland |
2,070 |
|
|
Limited (Provision to meet closure costs) |
||
|
1984 |
Industrial Development Authority |
19,000 |
|
1985 |
Irish Steel Limited |
5,000 |
|
Industrial Development Authority |
500 |
|
|
Irish Goods Council |
55 |
|
|
National Enterprise Agency Limited |
50 |
|
|
National Film Studios of Ireland Limited |
69 |
|
|
(Provision to meet closure costs) |
||
|
Kilkenny Design Workshops Ltd. |
262 |
44.
asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if his Department or any body or agency under the aegis of his Department have sought approval for, or are considering applying for approval for, term loans or other loans to finance excess revenue expenditure.
Limerick East): The term “excess revenue expenditure” is being interpreted as expenditure in excess of gross expenditure listed in the revised Book of Estimates for 1986.
Neither the Department nor any of the bodies under the aegis of my Department has sought approval for, nor am I aware is considering applying for approval for, such loans.
45.
asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if the 1986 Vote or Votes to his Department include provision for the funding of excess expenditure over approved expenditure limits by agencies or bodies financed from his Department's Vote in respect of years prior to 1986; if so, the amount of the excess expenditure for 1982 to 1985 and the estimated projected excess for 1986; and the amount which is included under each subhead to finance this excess expenditure.
The 1986 Vote of my Department does not include provision for the funding of excess expenditure over approved expenditure limits by agencies or bodies financed from the Vote of my Department in respect of years prior to 1986.