John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)

This is an issue I raised with the Minister last year, in committee. It does not sit well with the situation that some of the NGOs find themselves in, right now, when they tell us, continually, that they are laying people off in our programme countries, hundreds in many cases. They have had to slash their administrative budgets by so much while at the same time they have lost at least 20% to 25% of the income they would get from the public.

It does not sit right when one gets the figures - I got those from the Department's website – and sees that administration is going up, while at the same time the overall aid budget has gone down. I do not argue with the Minister as regards the need for planning, monitoring and auditing, which all require an administrative budget. At the same time, however, it is very hard to reconcile an increase in administration within this area. It is almost as if the Government sector was working in a different paradigm when it comes to the private sector and the NGO sector with regard to the financial cost of administration.

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