Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I recognise that, after the Department of Finance, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is currently the most powerful Department in government. Obviously, it has played a very important role in turning the finances of the country around. In case I forget to say it later, I want to acknowledge now the role public servants have played in terms of the pay cuts they have had to accept and also, in some cases, extra hours worked. I very much hope they will continue to benefit from the fact that the economy has turned around.

Every Department has to come to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to get its hands on the money it requires to run its operations. Can Mr. Watt explain the criteria and examinations he employs to be satisfied that Departments' Estimates are accurate? In answering, could he address the fact that, in some cases, there have to be Supplementary Estimates. The body that stands out most obviously is the HSE. Other examples concern Army pensions and the Garda Síochána. It would be very useful for the public to hear the criteria.