Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

Three of the five questions before the Taoiseach on this matter deal with whether he has received communication recently from the Moriarty tribunal. I have not heard him respond to that question. I know he is a very busy man but he must have the opportunity to check his post from time to time. If he could answer the question directly, I would appreciate it, as would Deputy Sargent.

On the costs, the Government has made at least three attempts over the past two and a half years to reduce barristers' fees at the tribunals from the daily rate of €2,500 to €900. It was first mooted by the former Minister for Finance, now European Commissioner, in July 2004 and was abandoned by the Government in September 2004. The Taoiseach raised the matter again in September 2005 and said that if the tribunal had not completed its work by the end of June 2006, the reduced fees would apply, yet the Government, having requested a reduction for the third time, has, as of the start of July, maintained the existing fees for barristers at all the long-standing tribunals and that will remain the position until they complete their work.

Will the Taoiseach explain why the Government, having raised this issue on a number of occasions and sought to reduce the cost, which in the case of the Moriarty tribunal seems to amount to €19 million of a total of €25 million, has not pursued the matter? If the Government had achieved what it said it would achieve in July 2004, how much would have been saved in the two and a half years since then?

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