Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

I support the call for more time to be made available on Committee Stage for consideration of the Finance Bill, especially in light of the three volume review on tax reliefs this year. The time is needed, along with Report Stage in the House, to examine a variety of issues, including the evasion of responsibility by the Government of large areas of public expenditure. One of these was reported during the week when Department of Finance correspondents questioned whether the Health Service Executive should be the body responsible for spending the huge health budget.

On those grounds a set of circumstances have come about which have not existed in previous years. These demand, particularly in light of budget announcements by the Minister for Finance, that the budgetary process be reviewed. This Finance Bill should be subject to the greatest amount of consideration possible and more than we have given it in previous years.

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