Eoin Hayes (Dublin Bay South, Social Democrats)

I thank the Minister and all his officials for coming in today. I welcome the opportunity to examine these accounts.

I join the Minister in his remarks about how important the outcomes these payments are in supporting individuals, "reducing poverty and promoting dignity and respect, which are the real deliverables that matter." I also congratulate the Minister's team in the Department for supporting people and doing all the work that they do.

This is my first time to scrutinise these accounts so I might ask some very simplistic questions, if the Minister will forgive me, to get a sense of things. From my understanding of the Minister's remarks and all the information that has been given, there is a €4.5 billion surplus in the Social Insurance Fund this year. The Minister said there is a cumulative standing total of €13.6 billion. What happens to that surplus? Where does it go? If it is saved, does it accumulate interest at an interbank rate? Finally, who decides what to do with it?