Results 29,561-29,580 of 34,885 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Sports Capital Programme Administration (8 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: 609. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport when applications will be called for the next round of funding under the sports capital programme; the approximate timing of when they are to be submitted to the Department and the expected date on which they will be approved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41981/13]

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: I want to know why the Department has new secrecy provisions built into the legislation going through the Dáil for PPPs. There are between €4 billion and €5 billion worth of them now. Why has the Department included in that legislation specific new provisions to exclude from freedom of information the terms and conditions of employees of the National Treasury Management...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: No, it does not. The fees are still in place. I cannot let that statement go unchallenged. The biggest change in 2003 was the fees and the Department is not reversing them. I will leave it with the Minister. I have made the point.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Chairman for allowing me to contribute a second time. I wish to raise the issue of public private partnerships, PPP. I may have to ask the Comptroller and Auditor General to help me on this issue also. I am a little confused by a footnote in his report. It refers to future commitments in respect of public private partnerships which are estimated at about €4 billion as...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: Thank you, Mr. Watt. My next question also relates to the outstanding commitments of €4 billion for projects included in the Comptroller and Auditor General's report. What is the interest payment for these projects? May I also have the highest and lowest figures for the cost of finance for the projects?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: Does Mr. Watt have any idea if the rate is 5%, 6%, 7% to 8%?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: The reason I am specifically raising the cost of finance is that I see from the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General issued last week that the average cost of finance in respect of the national debt is about 4%. I do not see a reason the State and the taxpayer should have to pay a finance charge of more than 5% on a figure of €4 billion to €5 billion. If we were to...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: The Comptroller and Auditor General refers to the need for periodic benchmarking of PPP projects. Mr. Watts stated in his recent report that core services had saved €160,000 in renegotiating PPP agreements. He also stated he had agreed to ask all relevant Departments to do the same. Has he done this yet? Has he issued a circular in that regard?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: I ask Mr. Watt to send it to the Committee of Public Accounts because it is important to see how the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is following up on matters. Will he also come back to us on the €4 billion outstanding on PPP projects? I see the commitments for some school projects assume an inflation rate of 4%, while others assume an inflation rate of 2.5%. If the...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Comptroller and Auditor General for that information. Mr. Watt stated that the Freedom of Information Bill 2013 will ensure Ireland's freedom of information regime is restored to the top tier of legal frameworks internationally for facilitating access to official information. Will Mr. Watt tell me why the Department has put in the Bill, which is on Second Stage in the Chamber as...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: I wish to bring up one particular topic but specifically on this issue. I must state straight up that Mr. Watt is being overly sensitive and I will tell him the reason his actions prove this. Mr. Watt spoke of the €50 billion that is expended by the State and the good work that is done. That will be debated in the Chamber during the budget and Estimates debates. In the case of each...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: All are under 50.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: It is 97% in some European countries.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: Could Mr. Watt send them on to me?

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: It would be helpful if the Department or Government could set a target of 95%, which would be closer to the EU figure. I am calculating the figure. Mr. Watt is saying 90% of the figure of €13 billion goes to Irish businesses. If another 5% was added to that, it would be another €700 million out of that figure of €13 billion going into the Irish economy just for making...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: Yes. We know about patents but the big issue is that we are still paying too much.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: Before I touch on PPPs, I have another question for Mr. Watt. I am not straying into public sector pay. We have talked about savings and procurement. What other savings can the Department achieve in the public service that are non-pay and non-procurement through efficiencies? In respect of Croke Park and interim reports, they were always able to demonstrate large non-pay savings of which...

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: I will come back later.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: Yes, we can disagree.

Public Accounts Committee: 2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances
Vote 42 - Office of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Chapter 6 - Financial Commitments under Public Private Partnerships
Chapter 12 - Vote Accounting
Chapter 13 - Procurement without a Competitive Process (3 Oct 2013)

Seán Fleming: We did not get the Estimates until six months into the year.