THE DEPARTMENT of Health will provide almost a third of the €440 million in cutbacks ordered by Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan for 2008, according to detailed breakdowns provided by Government departments yesterday.
The department said it expects to make €144 million in savings this year, with some €85 million derived from a deferral of expenditure under the Fair Deal nursing home scheme until 2009. A further €21 million will be saved through cutbacks in budgets for administration, advertising and for agencies other than the HSE, which is under the control of the department.
The remaining €38 million will come from the balance that has resulted from a slower roll-out of new approved developments.
Five Ministers yesterday outlined the specific cutbacks made in their departments during the first day of the two-day Dáil debate on the issue. The remaining 10 Ministers will take part in the debate today. However, all departments, with the exception of agriculture, were in a position to provide details of their individual figures yesterday.
The bulk of the €83.2 million in savings in the Department of Finance will result from a deferral of acquisition of land, buildings and projects by the Office of Public Works, totalling €75 million. That will absorb all but €3 million, with the department saying last night that it would make €5.2 million in savings from agencies under its aegis.
Environment yesterday said it would save €48 million this year, with €30 million of that from a deferral of the gateway innovation fund until next year. The landfill remediation scheme will also have €10 million shaved from this year's budget. A spokesman for Minister for the Environment John Gormley said last night that both were deferrals and he remained committed to achieving both programmes next year.
The Department of Foreign Affairs will be one of the big contributors to the measures, due to the €45 million cutback in overseas development aid. The department said last night it hoped to achieve a further €2 million in efficiency savings.
Agriculture was not in a position to provide any details, while there were scant details available from the Department of Education. It said that cutbacks would amount to €6.6 million in 2008, and that the situation would be fully outlined by the Minister, Batt O'Keeffe, in the Dáil today.
The Department of Transport is expected to achieve €24 million in savings this year, according to its spokeswoman. Most (€20 million) will come from cutbacks in capital projects, €2 million from the administration side and €1.9 million in payroll, advertising and consultancy savings. A further €150,000 will come via agencies such as the Railway Procurement Agency and the Road Safety Authority.
The cutbacks will amount to €8.8 million in the Department of Justice, although the Minister, Dermot Ahern, said that much larger savings would be achieved if decisions were taken to amalgamate any of the 31 agencies under the control of the department.
Only 190 out of a possible 400 to 500 new soldiers will be recruited to the Defence Forces this year, achieving a saving of €2 million in the defence budget. The department's spokeswoman said it would not affect overall troop numbers of 10,500 in the long term. The rest of the €4.6 million in savings will come from a €2.1 million cut in the administration and buildings budget and €500,000 from the suspension of the Army Reserve recruitment campaign.
Some €10 million will be sought in Enterprise and Employment. No further details were made available last night. They will be outlined by Tánaiste Mary Coughlan today. The Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Éamon Ó Cuív, will outline savings of €852,000 to the Dáil today.
The balance of the cutbacks will come from cross-departmental savings, the Government said.