Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

Deputy Burton referred to an issue of great importance, that of subsequently reporting back to this House on the activities of the Council of Europe Development Bill. In various agreements with international finance agencies there is a requirement for the Minister for Finance to table such reports. I have in mind the International Monetary Fund, IMF, and the World Bank in particular. While those reports are often not what they should be in terms of passing on information, at least there is a mechanism for reporting back to this House. I ask the Minister of State to state whether such a mechanism will exist for this in the future?

It is obvious that the Government has been guilty of gross hypocrisy in the area of development aid. As of now, 0.39% of GNP is given to overseas development aid, which is well short of the 0.7% target promised by the Taoiseach, most recently in Johannesburg. Even if one takes into account the €60 million increase projected this year and the €130 million projected for the next two years, it is likely that the 0.5% figure will not be reached either, given the projected levels of economic growth. The figure in 2007 is likely to be no greater than 0.44% or 0.45% of GNP. That is the summit of the Government's ambition on overseas development aid. We are moving from a current figure of 0.39% to 0.44%. We are talking about a significant fund in ODA of well over €400 million and up to €500 million and €600 million by 2007.

However when the Band Aid Foundation asked for a VAT rebate on DVD and CD sales of its charity record which will be released at Christmas, the Government chose to respond not by giving a VAT rebate but by taking €1 million from the development assistance budget and giving it to the Band Aid budget regardless of how that money has been allocated. One can understand the reason we on this side, and many outside, are utterly cynical about the Government's attitude to overseas development aid. That is an attitude that can translate not only into development aid but across a myriad of charities and voluntary organisations requesting particular action on the way they are treated for VAT repayment purposes.

I wish to raise the issue of Belarus, a matter that was raised on the Order of Business. Belarus is significant in the context of this Bill because it is likely that it will be one of the countries seeking funds from the Council of Europe Development Bank and will be accessing such funds to develop badly needed infrastructure. The Taoiseach has given an indication that he will seek a statement from the Department of Foreign Affairs on what is being done. Ireland has given more per capita than any other country towards alleviating the stress and suffering caused by the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. When the head of Government in that region says that in future young people cannot come to Ireland to receive medical assistance or for rest and recuperation, from which they have benefited for the past 18 years, we need to say that internationally this does not represent best practice. We should use the mechanism of our membership of this bank to ask whether the development that will occur in Belarus as a result of accessing funds from this bank — our membership of the bank is comparable with the making of diktats of this type — will affect the benefit to which young people from Belarus, Ukraine and other countries in the region are entitled, which they have received previously.

Will the Minister of State say how the Government will report back to the Dáil in future on how the Council of Europe Development Fund is doing its work, how we can respond in future and specific issues occurring in Belarus? I hope for some defence on what is an unacceptable position on overseas development aid but I may be living in hope of receiving an adequate response in that area.

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