Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I go back again to the point that the Deputy is feeding into a narrative that I find unusual for him, given that he makes the case for the public sector. He is feeding into that. There are many other ways of exercising accountability rather than just by dismissing people. In respect of the public sector, while there are many things that we, and I, want it to do better, I will still make the case that when it comes to the delivery of projects, which we are discussing, it does a good job more often than not.

The State Claims Agency is not a Vote for the Department of public expenditure but is a Vote for the Department of Finance. It is not a part of the Vote I am bringing forward to the committee so I cannot answer the questions the Deputy has asked. They should be put to the Minister for Finance and not to me. As a former Minister for Finance, who was responsible for that Vote, much of the increase in the budget for the State Claims Agency is driven by its need to respond to court cases and to support and inform the very public servants the Deputy made a point of praising a few moments ago. When the Deputy asks about the growth of the budget of the State Claims Agency, the question and his tone imply waste in how it is done. The work of the State Claims Agency, which, as I said, is not part of the Vote before the committee today, is, in many cases, driven by its need to respond-----