Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Cardiff and the officials from the court. Regarding gross national income, GNI, is the contribution from each country to the overall budget calculated on a pro ratabasis? I presume that economies pay more as they grow and less as they shrink, but that there is an overall pro rataequation.

Deputy O'Reilly touched on the issues of natural resources and agriculture. I welcome the reduction in the overall error rate from 4.4% to 3.6% between 2013 and 2014. The figure for direct support payments is 2.9%, less than the headline figure for natural resources, which is itself important. I will not go over those matters again, but there seem to be issues with over-declarations year on year. Each year, I believe we will come to the end of the mapping and digitisation process. Do all countries participate in satellite mapping? There were suspicions that only Ireland was involved, but I am sure that is not the case. Are there persistent offenders or situations arising in different countries?

Regarding public procurement, Irish companies have the option of tendering for EU work depending on the price of the job. Stories have come to light in certain countries of Irish companies, among others, winning contracts that were subsequently subjected to local charges, local arrangements or local interference, with extra money being sought. This resulted in overspending, further claims or contractors pulling out of jobs, leading to re-tendering and higher costs. Have these issues been investigated? Do they form a part of the report? Is it a commonplace practice or more of an isolated situation or myth?

Are the court's recommendations binding, or is it the case that it submits a report and it is for each member state to follow up on that? Can court proceedings be enacted?