Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Nothing has been surrendered. The additional amount – it was approximately €62 million – was allocated to the secure tenancy affordable rental investment scheme, STAR, to which we were receiving applications. We only opened that scheme late last year and there was a great deal of interest in it, so we wanted to secure those tenancies.

I will discuss the AEV in a minute and how we can present data to the committee.

We sought and got flexibility within our Vote last year, which we used wisely. This year, spending outturns are already way ahead of last year’s across all of the main subheads, for example, A3, social housing provision, affordable housing, etc. We also made changes to the cost-rental equity loan, which led to further increased applications under CREL. CREL was under pressure early last year because of the increased cost of development finance and so on, so we made significant changes to the loan to ensure those schemes were viable.

To answer the Deputy’s question, I believe the capital underspend was €141 million across a number of subheads, not just one. I will see if I can get some of the headline items for the Deputy now. If not, I will submit them to the committee in writing. That ensured there was a buffer on capital provision into this year. We have negotiated additional capital for this year as well because our spend is ahead of profile, and certainly ahead of last year’s, due to our increased activity across all of the main areas of our Vote. Through the national development plan, NDP, ceiling reviews, the Department has also received additional funding to ensure delivery.

Regarding the AEV, the Deputy and I have been writing back and forward. That is a budget document and is only at programme level. The REV is published each December. Between the budget and December, we work out the optimum subhead allocations. The document the Deputy received from the Department of public expenditure through an FOI request – I genuinely do not like to see people having to submit FOI requests for information – was a background document from that Department. It was not the specific document in question. We need to be allowed time and space between the AEV and the REV being published each December. Information was only provided in January after the publication of the REV. That was the information the Deputy got. The table provided by the Department of public expenditure was an internal informal working document.

That said, I have no difficulty with people being able to see what our output is, as long as it does not add incredible additional work. We bring to the Cabinet quarterly expenditure reports, too. What happened was never the intention.

It was just that what was asked for was genuinely not available at the time it was asked for. The document the Deputy got from the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform was a background document. I do not want to have a back and forth. I take the point. If something that can be helpful to Deputies can be provided at the time it is asked for, we always endeavour to do our best to provide it. We also always endeavour to answer parliamentary questions. We get hundreds of them across all the subheadings. We do that as best we can.