Dermot Ahern
Ceist:105 Mr. D. Ahern asked the Minister for Finance the recipients of lottery funds under the various headings in 1995 and to date in 1996; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12831/96]
Written Answers. - National Lottery Funds.
Details of actual national lottery expenditure by Departments are listed each year in the appropriation accounts for the departments concerned. The appropriation accounts for 1995 will be available in the autumn of this year. The provisions for 1996 are shown, in subhead form, in the Book of Estimates.
Under section 5 of the National Lottery Act, 1986, the Government decide how the surplus from the national lottery is to be allocated between Departments. While I, as Minister for Finance, have overall responsibility for the operation of the national lottery, once allocations have been decided by Government, responsibility for disbursement rests with the relevant spending Minister.
The only national lottery funds distributed by my Department so far in 1996 are payments amounting to £28,000 which were made to Gaeleagras na Séirbhíse Phoiblí for Irish language training. In 1995 my Department paid £109,000 in respect of Gaeleagras and £250,000 to the Irish Institute of European Affairs.