Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Chairman, I propose that we proceed in a more structured way. It makes little sense to begin by discussing an individual saving of €800,000, €200,000 or whatever - that is like focusing on €1 within a household budget. We need to look at the big picture in a structured way. I propose, through the Chair, that we lay out a programme of work under which we would look first at 2012, anticipating savings and so on for this year, before moving onto 2013.

In that regard, I would like, before proceeding any further, to put a specific question to the Minister. I accept there must be cuts in expenditure, but it is important that they are equitable across Departments. In that context, will the Minister indicate the proposed percentage cut for his Vote as between 2012 and 2013 and how that compares with other Departments? In other words, is agriculture taking a larger hit than other Departments in terms of the distribution of Exchequer funding? Before getting into detail on particular spending programmes, we must consider the broader question of whether cutbacks have been spread equitably across the big spending Departments.