Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I will take up the same theme. In light of the children's hospital debacle, have all major capital programmes been reprofiled so that we can have a real, verifiable costing for the major projects, some of which have been outlined by my colleague, Deputy Burton? They have all been set out to be done. Will these be delivered and can we afford to continue with all of them? I will make one point as somebody who was responsible for public spending for five years about the notion that one can save €100 million this year without saving any money. If one has to save €100 million in cash, that is €100 million that one cannot spend. Some €100 million extra is going to the children's hospital. Last week, the Taoiseach told me that he does not need the Revised Estimates at all and can vire money. Since then, wiser counsel has prevailed and Revised Estimates will be presented today.

Some €65 million in additional money is being added to the Department of Health's capital programme to meet the €100 million requirement and it has to find €35 million itself. We can use words such as reprofiling but this involves real cash savings. It is reasonable for us to ask what projects will deliver the €35 million in cash in the Department of Health in 2019. What projects will deliver the €65 million being transferred into the Department of Health from other Departments?

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