Mr. P. J. Fitzpatrick:

Either the Department of Finance or the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform have a formula for calculating overhead costs for closing offices and reducing numbers. The first factor was that Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine did not use that formula. The second factor is that it calculated pay based on mid-point in the salary scales, whereas nearly all the staff were at the maximum point. In the event, however, the savings were understated.