Results 18,761-18,780 of 27,019 for speaker:Michael Noonan

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: No, I do not.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: There are some private sector studies in the area, and anything in the macroeconomics area is of interest. However, I am not commissioning work in the Department of Finance.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The spend in 2014 was €374,000, and that is compared to an allocation of €649,000. The underspend was driven largely by a delay in progressing various premises projects, as tendering and recruitment processes are required. There is an allocation of €1,389,000 for 2015 and a lot of the added expenditure comes from health and safety considerations. Before the Deputy came...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: With the permission of the Chairman, I will re-read the note, but I have put it on the record already. In 2014, external reports on health and safety and facilities management identified some areas where immediate remedial work was required. A carefully designed and sequenced programme of projects has been planned to address the issues raised. A major upgrading of the Government Buildings...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: We are moving to a position in which significant work will be carried out in 2015 rather than the routine care and maintenance work that was done in 2014 because of tendering and procurement requirements.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: That-----

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The allocation was €0.575 million. That was provided to enable the unit to continue its programme of rolling reviews of tax categories and expenditures. In addition to the above, the committee will be aware that the division has been engaged in a number of legal challenges which will continue in 2015. The allocation sought for 2015 is increased to reflect the additional external...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: It is the opposite, we are defending our tax policies, in court if necessary, to ensure that our tax base is not eroded.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The allocation of this subhead in 2014 was €490,000 compared to an increased allocation of €1.85 million in 2015. A number of factors drove this. I am taking on board the committee members' comments last year that the transformation in the reform budget for the Department should be centralised. It is centralised in this subhead. We have also made provision for costs...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: It is the consolidation of the budget.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The Comptroller and Auditor General reports every year. If the Deputy looks at the number of reports produced he will see there has been a falling away from when it was at its peak. There were 55 reports published in 2009. In 2010 there were 54 published, in 2011 there were 50 published, in 2012 there were 31 published, in 2013 there were 30 published and in 2014 there were 25. The...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: Eight on the reporting side, 14 altogether.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: Clearly the Comptroller and Auditor General has to carry out his statutory work first and complete all the audits. I will list the reports published in each year, starting in 2009. I will give the publishing dates rather than the dates the work was done. Some 55 reports were published in 2009; 54 in 2010; 50 in 2011; 31 in 2012; 30 in 2013; and 25 in 2014. My note states that he has...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: He has identified 130 matters. I have an appendix which gives the arrears cases. In 2011 and 2012 there are still three clients, Inland Fisheries, National College of Art and Design and County Cork VEC where the reports have not yet issued. In 2012, there are 16 clients that have not been reported on. These include Dublin Dental Hospital; National Museum of Ireland; Grand Canal Harbour...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: There is a check on that. They check the time and they check the per diem. It is checked periodically.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: In cycles of two to three years.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: My advice is that it is linked to the Central Fund. The Central Fund linkage means the Department of Finance would be the appropriate Department. The two Departments were one Department until the formation of the last Government. Effectively the Secretaries General got together and decided what duties would be allocated to which Department. Some of them are clear, such as expenditure...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: I had not thought about it all until the Deputy raised the matter.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: The Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General seems to have got what it asked for, unusually.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Finance: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 7 - Office of the Minister for Finance (Revised)
Vote 8 - Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Revised)
Vote 9 - Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revised)
Vote 10 - Office of the Appeal Commissioners (Revised) (18 Feb 2015)

Michael Noonan: It would be inappropriate for me to ask. The Comptroller and Auditor General is a constitutional officer. He is independent in the exercise of his functions. He does not report to me, he reports to the Committee of Public Accounts. The Deputy's colleagues on the committee will be in a position to raise the series of issues other than lack of resources, which may be inhibiting the...