Results 18,301-18,320 of 35,829 for speaker:Pearse Doherty

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: It is so disappointing we have only an hour. This is the big set-piece event and the Minister has other engagements, which means we have only an hour. This is simply not acceptable and we need to ensure it is not replicated. Some of us travelled far to be here this morning. It is not good enough. My question is on the water refund. This is something the Minister did not mention in his...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: I wish to pick up on that figure. I am looking at the spreadsheets for the fiscal monitor showing the end of June underspend in different Departments. There is an analysis of gross Voted expenditure and we see that it is under profile by €322 million. Some €57 million of that is capital spending and current spending is €265 million. Is that the figure being considered...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Is it €322 million or €265 million?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Is the Minister suggesting that the €57 million for capital spending is in the pot to pay back water charges?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: I am just seeking clarity. Is the Minister considering using capital underspend at this point in time to make up the repayment of water charges or is he only looking at the current underspend?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Okay. Capital underspend would be diverted to refunding water charges as opposed to housing, where there is a great need for additional capital and where we are already over profile in capital spend.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: The Minister is saying that it is possible he will use capital underspend for refunding water charges.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: No, I did not. I said it was possible.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: I am trying to figure out exactly where this money is coming from. If we looked at the same analysis of gross voted expenditure in 2016 and 2015 instead of 2017 would we see an underspend of current expenditure at this point in time also?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: It would be natural for Departments to try to stay below profile in the first half of the year in terms of prudent budgeting.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Would that be correct?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: My point is that it would have been natural and would have been the case in the past that current expenditure, for example, in the education budget, would be under profile at this time of the year but towards the end of the year it would come closer to profile. Is that not a trend we would have seen generally across Departments?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Okay. The Minister might not agree with many of us who believe the capital underspend should be re-diverted into major capital programmes in areas such as housing. The current underspend is €265 million, €178 million of which the Minister needs to refund water charges by the end of the year. We have established that it is now the norm for the expenditure of Departments to be...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Perhaps I should not speak for all my colleagues, but I do not think anybody in this room disagrees with the idea of refunding. Sinn Féin's argument is that these issues should have been budgeted for prudently so that we do not have to look for savings or underspends, which are natural within Departments, in order to facilitate a major refund. The level of spending in the Department of...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: We are familiar with that.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: I understand that the Minister is leaving to do a press announcement on issues relevant to this committee. I respect the Minister but that is the wrong approach. This is the Oireachtas Committee on Budgetary Oversight. The Minister has curtailed our proceedings to an hour and is going to leave here to make a press announcement on the expenditure review, which we, the members of the...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: I am using that time because this is not good practice. If we are going to take the work of this committee seriously, we need to get into the depths of these issues. I know reference was made to water charges. This is not about water charges, it is about the expenditure profile which we were discussing earlier and the process. I would like to talk to the Minister about the commitments in...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: This is a set piece event in the budgetary process. Following the publication of the summer economic statement, the Minister appears before this committee. I know we will not change this now, but I ask the Minister to review this for next year. This is an affront to this committee. It is wrong.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Can I ask my question?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Summer Economic Statement: Discussion. (20 Jul 2017)

Pearse Doherty: Can I ask four brief questions and I will ask them together?