I move amendment No. 2:—
New section. Before Section 18 to insert a new section as follows:—
18.—(1) The Minister shall cause to be kept, in respect of every business carried on by him under this Act, all proper and usual accounts (in such form as shall be approved of by the Minister for Finance) of all moneys received or expended by him, including a capital account, revenue account, profit and loss account and a balance sheet.
(2) The accounts of the Minister in respect of every business carried on by him under this Act shall, at the end of every accounting year for such business, be transmitted to the Comptroller and Auditor-General, who shall audit, certify and report upon such accounts.
(3) Upon the completion of an audit under this section of the accounts of any business carried on by the Minister under this Act, the Minister shall cause a copy of the balance sheet and profit and loss account as passed by the Comptroller and Auditor-General and a copy of his report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.
On the Second Reading I referred to this matter. The only information in the form of figures that the House will get, as the Bill now stands, is that set out in Section 18, which authorises the Minister to receive from the Minister for Finance certain moneys as provided by the Oireachtas and then causes the Minister to pay into the Exchequer any moneys received under the Bill. If there is no profit or no available cash, the public and the Parliament will know nothing whatever about the trading operations of this experiment. That does not seem right or proper. Under the Slaughter of Animals Bill the Minister takes power to engage in trading operations in connection with canning, dealing with old cows, etc., and he undertakes to give full accounts to the Oireachtas in due course—a profit and loss account, balance sheet, etc. I think it is only reasonable that the Minister should be asked to do this in the case of industrial alcohol. I am not tied to the exact wording of the amendment, which is taken actually verbatim, with one or two small alterations for the purpose of adaptation, from the Slaughter of Animals Bill. It is the principle I am concerned about, and if the Minister accepts the principle the amendment can be put in suitable form.