Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The other was a shortfall in PRSI. That was simply money that was labelled PRSI originally that actually was universal social charge when one drilled down to it because it was not dis-aggregated by Revenue. It looked as if there was more in PRSI income than there was and when that was taken out, it looked like a hole in the PRSI. There was a hole in the Social Insurance Fund because of a re-labelling of money. In true terms, if one looks at the overall increase in expenditure, that €1.5 billion is approximately 2.5% of the total budget and that takes no account of the savings across other line Departments. As I stated at the end of 2012, on an underlying basis, our spending was less than 0.4% above target for the year. It is an important clarification that there being a shortfall in PRSI is not a mismanagement in terms of expenditure. One had no control over that. What happens on PRSI is a matter for the numbers employed, etc. If there is an increase in unemployment, it has a double impact on social welfare. It increases the cost of job-support payments and also diminishes the volume of PRSI receipts.