Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 June 2004
142 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if he will use the €47 million collected from tax defaulters to end, once and for all, the day care, respite care and residential waiting lists for persons with intellectual disabilities. [19393/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraWith regard to how the amount referred to by the Deputy should be used, it is important to realise that provision for receipts from ongoing investigations is made each year as part of the projections for total tax revenue. As such, they are included in the total resources that underpin the Government's expenditure targets for the year. To the extent that any of the figure to which he refers may have been realised from special investigations, such receipts are once-off in nature and cannot be treated as "ordinary" or ongoing resources. This fact has been recognised in the past when such once-off receipts from, for example, tax amnesties or the sale of State assets, have been used mainly to meet liabilities with no recurring costs, such as reducing our debt burden or providing for future pension needs.
I remind the Deputy that I provided €10.1 billion in the 2004 Estimates allocation for the Department of Health and Children, which represented an increase of 8% on the 2003 outturn. For the most part, it is for the Minister for Health and Children to allocate these resources in whatever way he sees fit with regard to the provision of health services. In 2004, some €1.9 billion is being invested in services for persons with disabilities, covering the intellectual, physical, sensory, autism and mental illness areas. This represents an increase of €1.2 billion since 1997.
