Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 15 Mar 1928

Vol. 22 No. 12

SUPPLEMENTARY AND ADDITIONAL ESTIMATES—RESUMED. - VOTE No. 73—REPAYMENTS TO CONTINGENCY FUND.

MINISTER for FINANCE (Mr. Blythe)

I move:—

Go ndeontar suim ná raghaidh thar £743 chun íoctha an Mhuirir a thiocfidh chun bheith iníoctha i rith na bliana dar críoch 31adh Márta, 1928, chun Roimhíocanna Ilghnéitheacha áirithe d'aisíoc leis an bPrímh-Chiste.

That a sum not exceeding £743 be granted to defray the Charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending 31st March, 1928, for repayment to the Central Fund of certain miscellaneous advances.

The Contingency Fund was established in 1923-24 by the Vote of a grant-in-aid. No final payment is charged against the Contingency Fund. The Fund is always restored to the original figure each year, either by means of a Supplementary Estimate, re-voting money to the Contingency Fund, or Repayment out of Votes for which supplementaries may have been necessary and on account of which sums may have been paid out of the Contingency Fund. The sums making up the total are set out in Part III. of the Estimates. There is provision for payment of bounties in the case of the birth of triplets.

Mr. MacENTEE

Does the Minister take responsibility for that?

Mr. BLYTHE

For the payment? Certainly.

Mr. MacENTEE

The contingencies?

AN CEANN COMHAIRLE

Let the Minister proceed.

Mr. BLYTHE

For many years past the Revenue Commissioners and their predecessors have had general authority to stamp free of cost, charging the necessary amount to the Contingency Fund, and Deed or other Instrument presented by a Government Department, the duty on which, if paid, would not have been borne by any private person, corporation or company, but would have been an ultimate charge on the Vote. This sum simply means that instead of a document being stamped free and the amount that would have been chargeable not going to revenue, it is paid out of this Vote instead of out of other Votes, and goes to the revenue. It is merely a book-keeping transaction.

The next item deals with the expenses of the funeral of the late Vice-President. There are numerous precedents for paying expenses such as these. In the case of Senator MacPartlin, who died at Geneva when he was there on an official delegation, the funeral expenses were paid. The same applies to the last item in sub-head 3, the stamp duty on the deed of settlement. It is usual in such cases that the stamp duty be paid out of the Contingency Fund.

Question put and agreed to.

Ordered: That the Resolutions come to in Committee on this day and on previous days be reported.

The Dáil went out of Committee.

Resolutions reported and agreed to.