Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

A multi-annual budgeting framework is entirely sensible and is exactly how we should do our business. It is also entirely reasonable that from year to year there would be a level of capital carryover. The last thing we want to do is to encourage what can be a damaging culture in any Department or organisation of spend it or lose it by year end. We know this gave rise to some bad practices in the past. In principle, I have no issue with capital transfers.

The Government seems to have a thing for 31 March deadlines. We are close to the mark and I agree with Deputy Sean Fleming that we are dealing with this matter very late in the day.

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