Ulick Burke (Fine Gael)

I do not know if he was in Government Buildings early enough this morning to have transmitted it.

This coincides with an article in today's The Irish Times by Vincent Browne. He described the bogus drama of budget day. The article summaries very well all the hype surrounding the budget and what could be done in a more positive way and collectively by the Houses of the Oireachtas in regard to the budget and the Estimates.

There are many items in the budget which are worthwhile and positive. However, an important sentence in the Budget Statement is that a good outcome for taxpayers' money would be the acid test of the success of any budget. We will have to wait for time to pass in that regard. Time and again, we have heard the Minster for Health and Children mention the enormous amount of money being spent on the health service. In an opinion poll in one of yesterday's newspapers, 58% of people polled said Professor Drumm had made no difference and 58% said the Minister, Deputy Harney, had made no difference. It was unusual that the same percentage of people said Professor Drumm and the Minister had made no difference to, or improved, the health service despite all the money spent.

Money was scattered about today to the various areas to improve the services but we will not know of the successes. This poll indicates the failure of the Minister for Health and Children to utilise, in a positive and effective way, moneys given to her Department. If an audit was done on moneys given to each Department on budget day, what would it show? We would hear of failures such as PPARS, electronic voting, etc.

Senator O'Toole commented on what has happened in education. There was only the smallest reference to education despite the needs which are screaming at people. Perhaps we must wait in suspense for the Minister for Education and Science to announce the details.

I had hoped the Minister of State, Deputy Parlon, would have been here so that he could have answered the following question.