John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Desmond for his public service and for attending this meeting. He outlined in his presentation a number of interventions designed to assist the Department with budget management and health sector planning, including management data reports, performance profiles, performance accountability framework, a national performance oversight group and so forth. When somebody discovers that the budget for something is short and more money is required, who ultimately makes the decision to spend that money in the full knowledge that Department's budget will overrun?