Enda Kenny
Ceist:7 Mr. Kenny asked the Taoiseach if he will make a statement on his Department’s Estimates for 2005. [32017/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraWednesday, 15 December 2004
Ceisteanna (7, 8)
Pat Rabbitte
Ceist:8 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Taoiseach if he will make a statement on the Estimates for his Department for 2005. [33212/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraFreagraí ó Béal (14 píosaí cainte)
I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 8 together.
The total allocation for my Department for 2005 is €37.444 million, of which €18.869 million is for administration and €18.626 million is for other services. Details of the Estimates are set out in the Abridged Estimates for the Public Service, which were presented to the Dáil on 18 November 2004. I look forward to addressing specific issues relating to the Estimates provisions when the Committee on Finance and the Public Service considers them in the usual way. I also look forward to responding to questions Deputies may wish to table separately about specific aspects of the work of my Department.
The Taoiseach commented yesterday about an individual consultancy case. When a Department appoints consultants and they travel abroad in the course of their work, is it the procedure for the consultant to travel to the destination and then invoice the Department for the flight or does the cost of the trip come from the Department's fund automatically?
I can only speak from my own experience. I do not have anybody contracted to the Department. My staff are staff of my Department and in the case mentioned by the Deputy, if the staff were approved to travel somewhere, the Department would pay the bills. It is certainly not the case that they would send a bill to the Department. That is the norm in my experience and Deputy Noel Dempsey, who is here too, says that it is the norm in his Department as well.
There are some interesting figures in the Estimates on which the Taoiseach might elaborate. The sum for consultancy services has increased by 23%, a significant amount. Ireland held the EU Presidency this year and people would assume there would be additional costs for consultancy services but it is hard to see why there is such an increase for next year. The fact that the Government has spent enormous amounts of money commissioning consultants is a matter of some concern. Will the Taoiseach elaborate on that?
The Forum for Peace and Reconciliation has served a very useful function. Does the increase in the subhead result from the fact that the Taoiseach intends to reconvene the forum following recent difficulties relating to Northern Ireland? On the commemoration initiative, what will we commemorate in 2005?
The forum subhead is kept in place in the event that it may be required to reconvene, as has happened a few times in the past five or six years. We do not have a particular plan in this regard, but we bring it back from time to time. We keep the structure in place, though no costs arise from that.
Almost all the funding available under subhead 10 is for the e-Cabinet initiative. While the initiative is still within budget, it has been extended across Departments. The timing difference relates to expenditure which will occur in 2005. A great deal of the work has been done, but the billing period will be in 2005.
The commemoration initiative subhead is a small budget held in the Department of the Taoiseach. Most of the provision for next year is accounted for and will be used to pay off the remaining bills of the Robert Emmet commemoration, which is complete. The Department has arranged to fund the organisers to help them to defray the costs. Department payments were issued last year and this year and will also be issued next year. I might be wrong, but off the top of my head there will be no major commemoration in 2005.
When looking at the Estimates for the Department of the Taoiseach, it stands out that consultancy services will increase by 23% next year. Is there a particular reason for that? As one would expect, consultancy costs accrued as a result of the EU Presidency, but why is the figure being increased by 23%?
That is the subhead on which I replied to Deputy McManus. It covers the information society e-Cabinet project. While the project is operating across Departments, the billing period will be in 2005 rather than 2004. That accounts for most of the money, although there may be other projects.
Will the Taoiseach tell me the total cost of the e-Cabinet project? Will he consider holding further sessions of the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation this year rather than keeping it on ice? The House will have a debate on Northern Ireland tomorrow, which inevitably will be limited. The current scenario deserves full, open-ended debate for which the forum provides.
The Deputy is going outside the realm of these questions.
I do not think so. Do you?
I do.
I will move on to the last point in my question then. Under subhead J on the inquiry into Dunnes payments, we appear still to be paying for the McCracken tribunal, which is well over. Will the Taoiseach explain why there continues to be a cost involved as we move into 2005?
I have checked my notes and confirm that funding under subhead E relates to the Robert Emmet commemoration. An amount of €65,000 is provided for suitable projects, most of which will be used to meet expenses incurred by the organisers of the Robert Emmet commemoration.
The provision for the tribunal of inquiry into Dunnes payments is a contingency provision to meet costs which may be awarded to parties represented at the tribunal. While the majority of costs have been paid, two parties have not yet claimed costs. As Deputy McManus stated correctly, it is some years since the tribunal completed its work. While the likelihood that the costs will be claimed decreases with time, the advice has been that we must make provision for costs that could arise.
I do not have full details of e-Cabinet costs, though I outlined them to the House recently in response to a parliamentary question. I can send Deputy McManus a note containing the information.
I thank the Taoiseach.