Mr. Robert Watt:

That is the nature of the system. With any Government system there is a treasury function. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform discharges that treasury function on behalf of the Government. This function was previously a function of the Department of Finance but it became the function of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on its establishment in 2011. It is the role of the Department to monitoring spending and manage the Estimates process. Where people are facing down various vested interests or constituents, it is convenient to blame the Department. For example, if the Senator was to call for more pay for the teachers, the Department of Education and Skills might respond that it would love to do that but the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform will not give it the money to do so. That is just an example. I am not suggesting that happens but if that were to happen, it would move the conversation on and away from the Senator. That is the nature of it.