Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is comprehensive correspondence. I flagged it simply because this committee has an obligation to be aware of the type of figures. We discussed this previously in respect of the oversight of the moneys involved because we are talking about Irish contributions to the EU budget moving towards the €3 billion mark. That is a significant proportion of Exchequer funding. There is no other element of funding allocated by this House that has as little oversight in terms of how it is distributed. I think the latest figures we have are for 2019, which show that we are paying in the region of €500 million more than we are receiving. That is almost beside the point because this covers a multiple of programmes. There are audit processes at a European level but they have been challenged as being ineffective at that level. At the end of the day, this is still Irish taxpayers' money that is being provided through our contributions to the EU. That money should be accounted for in the same way as all other expenditure. As I have said before, I am not sure precisely how we do that. There are audit provisions at an EU level but they have been roundly criticised as being ineffectual. We just need to keep it on the agenda and be mindful of it. Taxpayers and the Irish people have a right to know precisely on an annual basis that we are paying more in and, therefore, there is an increasing obligation every year to ensure the money is being spent effectively.