asked the Minister for Finance if he will state for each of the five financial years ended 31st March, 1959, the amount of net overestimation on the actual outturn of the year.
Ceisteanna—Questions (Resumed). - Net Overestimation.
11.
I assume the Deputy is referring to the net outcome of the budgetary provisions for overestimation and for supplementary estimates. I would refer him for information in that regard to the Tables in connection with the Financial Statement for the relevant years.
Would the Minister give us the figures for 1958-59? He gave them himself at col. 610 on 23rd April, 1958, as I found out since I put down the question, up to 1957-58. Would he give us the figures for 1958-59? I must have them.
I have not got them. I am sorry. Perhaps I can give them to the Deputy at a later stage during the day.
Might I ask the Minister for Finance a question? Under our parliamentary system, the resources of the Opposition are strictly limited. We simply have not got the secretarial staff to do research on Government publications during the years. We know these figures are available and are kept available in Government Departments. Surely it is not an excessive request at Budget time, that if we want the net outturn for each of five financial years, and the amount of net overestimation, to ask the Minister to write it down on a piece of paper and provide it as an answer to the Deputy. It would take a Deputy three or four hours to seek that information in the Library and to acquire it. The thing simply cannot be done unless extra secretarial help is provided and if it is not done, how can we properly debate the Budget? Surely the Minister could write it down on a piece of paper and give it to us.
The practice has always been to refer Deputies to the published statements for these things and I cannot understand how any intelligent Deputy would take three or four hours to get these figures. I should have thought one could get them in about ten minutes.
Without reflecting on my intelligence—I am trying to make Parliament work—I would ask the Minister to believe that for individual Deputies trying to do their jobs, and earn their livings, as well as dealing with parliamentary matters, reference to the requisite documents in order to get the information with accuracy and certainty is a very laborious task. It is not a laborious task if you are sustained by expert civil servants who know precisely where to look for them. I think the Minister knows that as well as I do. It can be done. We could get these figures, if we wanted to look for them, and we know where to look for them, but it is a protracted and tedious job, and if you are trying to earn your living as well as attend to your duties in Dáil Eireann, it is a very difficult thing to do. That difficulty could be overcome with a little cooperation from the Minister.
I agree with the Deputy that if there is any research to be done, or any calculation to be made, it would involve a lot of trouble.
Would the Minister name the document in which can be found the precise amount?
It is in the financial statement for 1958, for each year up to 1957/58. There is no published document in respect of which the information is available for 1958/59. I got an answer to a question yesterday which gives half the information, not the whole of it.