Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. McCarthy and his colleagues, who are welcome to the meeting. I wish to ask about a few specific topics. I am interested in one in particular, as are most Oireachtas Members, having served some time in local government.

The Comptroller and Auditor General laid out the figures. From the Central Fund, the local government fund and subventions from the Departments of the Environment, Community and Local Government and Transport, Tourism and Sport, approximately €2.4 billion went to local authorities in 2013. From the other documentation provided, we can see that the income of local authorities that year was in the region of €6 billion. Some 60% of their funding came from other sources, but we have no picture of that. It did not come through the Department's Vote. As the Accounting Officer of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, which is the mother Department of local authorities, Mr. McCarthy might discuss the 60%. He can forward to us a general breakdown of it if he does not have the information with him. For example, what is the breakdown between commercial rates, development levies, planning fees, parking fees, housing rent, housing loan repayments, landfill fees, fire service charges and other miscellaneous income?

An issue that constantly arises for the committee is that we only get a bit of the picture. We are not the audit group of local authorities. However, given that €2.4 billion of voted funding is going to local authorities, we want to know that it is being well spent. We can only know that if we know the totality of what is happening. How does Mr. McCarthy know that the €2.4 billion is spent on the projects the Department has identified, given that it probably goes into a large pot with a lot of other moneys raised by local authorities? The Department receives headings subsequently as to where money was spent, but there is no separate stream through which it can trace that funding once the cheque is sent. Am I right in that regard? Does Mr. McCarthy get my question? It is broad.