Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

In view of the general unease people are feeling about how the Government is running - or not running - the affairs of the country and the cost the tribunal has thus far incurred without ever producing an interim report, the possibility of further extended hearings in order to call back a collection of witnesses, particularly civil servants, is scary. Given the importance of the Moriarty tribunal in the affairs of the nation, and the fact that the budget heading is specifically the responsibility of the Taoiseach in his capacity as head of his Department, he needs to comment on the increase in the Estimate from €4 million to €7.5 million, which is an increase of 87%. He must be aware of the issue. The suggestion that only the line Minister in the relevant Department would be aware of this is surprising, because I would have thought that, with regard to legal privilege, the Attorney General was also involved in advising on this document.

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