Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I refer to subhead F and the costs of the Moriarty tribunal 2009. As the Deputy stated, €7.516 million was provided. That provision relates to the running costs of the tribunal in 2009 and the costs which are estimated to arise in 2009 regarding the completion of the tribunal's work. It is expected to include reporting costs and some element of award of legal costs. As it is not possible to definitively assess the amount of legal costs which may be awarded by the tribunal or the timing of these awards, a provision of approximately €7.516 has been included. However, this is only an estimate of the costs. This is a reduction of the 2008 allocation due to the fact that there is a reduced provision for legal fees in 2009, given the intention of the tribunal to conclude its work as early as possible in 2009. In a recent commitment to me, the sole member of the tribunal stated that he may need to convene a sitting to take a limited amount of further evidence, and that he would keep me informed of the likely developments and the likely impact on the timetable.

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