Written answers

Thursday, 18 October 2018

Department of Public Expenditure and Reform

Government Expenditure

Photo of Barry CowenBarry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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121. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the Government expenditure ceiling for 2012 to 2017; the actual corresponding expenditure for those years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43070/18]

Photo of Paschal DonohoePaschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Following the change in the budgetary timetable introduced in 2013, each December the Revised Estimates Volume for Public Services (REV) sets out gross and net voted expenditure allocations for each Vote for the following year. A key responsibility of each Government Minister and their Department is to manage the delivery of public services within these voted allocations.

Throughout the year, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is in regular contact with all Departments and Offices to ensure that expenditure is being managed within the overall fiscal parameters. The drawdown of funds from the Exchequer is monitored against published expenditure profiles and this information is published each month in the Exchequer Statement.

However, given the scale of gross voted expenditure,the cash basis of Government accounting, and the funding implications that unexpected events can have on expenditure requirements, variances between the allocations set out in the REV and the actual outturn in a given year arise for a number of reasons, including:

- Policy decisions taken by the Government during the year that result in allocation of additional resources to a particular area. An example of this would be a decision to provide a Christmas Bonus for long-term Social Welfare recipients.

- Overspending in a particular area that requires additional funding, through the provision of a Supplementary Estimate.

- Underspending in a particular area, for example due to lower than expected take-up of a particular scheme or initiative or a change in Government policy. Underspends also serve to offset, either fully or partially, overspends in other areas.

- Timing issues relating to receipts or payments that may change the amount that is required to be spent during the present year.

Where additional expenditure is anticipated, in excess of the amount originally voted by Dáil Éireann, Further Revised Estimates or Supplementary Estimates are presented to the Dáil for approval.

The following table sets out total REV gross allocations reflecting the original Estimates for the year agreed by Dáil Éireann. With the change in the budgetary timetable in 2013, the REV is now published in December each year. Each year's REV now provides information in respect of the impact of any Supplementary Estimates and Further Revised Estimates presented to the Dáil. These revised gross allocations, as published in the REV for the following year, are set out below for the years 2013-2017.

201220132014201520162017
€m€m€m€m€m€m
Gross Total Expenditure (REV) *55,86054,57752,98753,23155,83958,072
Gross Total Expenditure (REV plus Further Revised and Supplementary Estimates)**-54,84154,12454,91556,32958,949
Gross Total Expenditure (Outturn)***55,95854,37354,09854,59455,98758,525

* Gross allocation as set out in the REV. In 2016, new Estimates were presented to Dáil Éireann in June 2016 that included additional funding for the Health and Garda Votes. This additional funding is reflected in the table above.

** 2014 figure published in REV 2015 adjusted to reflect disestablishment of HSE Vote.

*** Appropriation account outturn for 2012 to 2016 and provisional outturn for 2017.

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