Mr. Kevin McCarthy:

We operate to pricing guidelines for what we procure. That informs decisions in respect of contracts that are entered into. There are obviously value for money considerations. A reality in the current environment is that there may be opportunistic behaviour in a market where people feel you are desperate and, therefore, willing to pay any price. We must avoid that. We cannot simply pay any price. There must be value for money considerations. We are guided by that. There is continual engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery, and Reform in respect of overall spend on accommodation. We are operating within sanctions. Clearly, when the war broke out last year and an emergency response was required, there were very early Government decisions about what was required. Departments were expected to step up and meet the challenges of the humanitarian crisis. Since then, we have had close engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery, and Reform about the costs that are being incurred. It was agreed late last year that we would bring regular expenditure memorandums to the Government this year.