Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)

I welcome this opportunity to address the Seanad on the Appropriation Bill 2005. Given the Seanad's busy schedule, I appreciate today's debate will be very brief and, as the Leader indicated this morning, there will be a more substantial debate on public expenditure early in the new year.

The main purpose of this Bill is to give statutory effect to the departmental Estimates for supply services both current and capital, including all the Supplementary Estimates which have been approved by the Dáil since the last Appropriation Act. The Bill also provides for the carryover of unspent voted capital into 2006 amounting to €346 million under the multi-annual capital envelopes.

The Bill, in line with what is now established practice, includes a technical provision to allow for the deferment of the end year deadline for the financial resolution passed on budget night. This year the Bill also includes a technical amendment to the Appropriation Act 1999 to allow for the payment of certain excise duties levied on tobacco products to the Health Service Executive Vote from 1 January 2006. In line with recent practice, the Seanad is also being asked to approve an earlier signature motion to facilitate a request to the President to sign the Bill earlier than she would normally do.

Section 1 appropriates for the year 2005, the net sum of almost €36.3 billion to the various services listed in Schedule 1. The 2005 sum includes Supplementary Estimates of €91.3 million on eight Votes which have been approved by the Dáil Éireann.

Current indications are that overall spending this year will be within budget. There will be a capital carryover under the multi-annual capital envelopes of €346 million from 2005 into 2006, or 5.8% of net voted capital for 2005. The corresponding capital carryover from 2004 to 2005 was €237 million, or 4.3% of net voted capital. The actual end year Exchequer outturn will be published in the end year Exchequer statement on 4 January 2006. As is normal, the Bill also seeks approval for the use of departmental receipts of almost €3.7 billion as appropriations-in-aid for the services listed in Schedule 1.

In accordance with the provisions of section 91 of the Finance Act 2004, which is the legal basis for capital carryover, section 2 provides for the carryover of €346 million. The relevant Votes are listed in Schedule 2. The €346 million cannot be spent in 2006 until the Dáil approves an order at the beginning of the year specifying the capital subheads in each of the Votes concerned against which the money will be spent as a first charge. The availability of the carryover facility of up to 10% of a Vote means that this money will not have to be surrendered at the end of the year and will not therefore be lost to the programmes concerned. I am sure we all endorse that approach.

Article 17 of the Constitution requires that the financial resolutions of each year must be enacted into law by the end of that year. However, the end year deadline can be deferred if an Act to that effect is passed before the end of that year. This section makes provision for this deferment to be invoked by both Government and Parliament. The inclusion of this provision in the Appropriation Bill will maintain the normal statutory deadlines for passing budget measures into law. Identical provisions have been included since the 1997 Appropriation Act.

There is a technical provision, by way of an amendment to the Appropriation Act 1999, to allow certain excise duties levied on tobacco products to be paid to the Health Service Executive Vote from I January 2006 rather than to the Vote of the Minister for the Health and Children as at present. Arising from a decision in budget 2000 to increase excise duty on cigarettes by 50p per packet of 20 and that the resulting revenue increase of €167.6 million in a full year would be used to fund health services, this amount has been paid as appropriations-in-aid to the Department of Health and Children since 1 January 2000. As the relevant health services are now provided by the Health Service Executive which has its own Vote, it is appropriate that these appropriations-in-aid should be paid directly to the HSE.

The Seanad is also being asked to approve an earlier signature motion. This is sought each year to ensure the necessary legislative authority is in place for the final end year issues from the Exchequer.

This Government is fully committed to achieving value for money from public expenditure. Measures announced by the Government on ICT projects and consultancies and additional measures for securing value for money announced by my colleague, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Cowen, in October last are being implemented. They build on measures already introduced, such as multi-annual budgets for capital programmes and new guidelines for the appraisal and management of capital projects. The cumulative impact of these is one of improved management of capital projects and programmes.

This Government has provided for over €45.5 billion in gross spending on the public services in 2005. Substantial additional resources have been allocated to the priority areas of health, education, social welfare and capital investment. I commend the Bill to the House.