asked the Minister for Finance if the Government has decided to reduce the projected public expenditure in 1984 by £500 million.

10.

asked the Minister for Finance whether recent statements by the Taoiseach concerning the need for public expenditure cuts of £500 million reflect decisions already taken by the Government.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 9 and 10 together.

The Government are at present considering their policy in relation to the level of public expenditure in 1984. The Government's decisions will be reflected in the usual abridged Book of Estimates.

In view of the commitment given in the Programme for Government by various Ministers responsible to this House, notably the Minister for Industry and Energy, will the Government bring the Estimates before the House now, months after their original stated intention?

That is a repetition of a question raised on today's Order of Business.

It arises directly from my question.

You are lucky your question was not ruled out——

You might have ruled whether it was relevant on the Order of Business, but it is certainly relevant now because this question was transferred to this Minister from the Taoiseach.

It was successfully argued this morning that it was relevant on the Order of Business.

I am trying to keep within the rules of order and I am sure the Ceann Comhairle will appreciate that.

I do not deny that.

Would the Minister clarify that point?

As was pointed out this morning, a number of factors have contributed to the delay in the publication date of the Estimates this year. One of those factors is the fact that since the end of August we have been involved in four special EEC Council meetings dealing with the financing of the European Community, with the proposal for a super-levy on agriculture and so on. Those meetings required a certain amount of intensive preparation both by individual Ministers and by the Government. They have taken up time which would normally have been used for Estimates purposes. In addition, there is the normal concern of ensuring that the decisions reached fully take account of the difficult economic and social situation in which we find ourselves.

It takes more time to produce Estimates which will stand up ——

I do not know who is answering my question.

Have the Deputies anything else to add on the Minister's behalf?

This is the first Government in six years ——

I do not know who is answering for the Minister.

Deputy O'Kennedy without interruption, please.

Does the statement made by the Taoiseach represent Government policy, that is, that a decision has been taken to reduce public expenditure across the board by £500 million?

As I said in my reply, the Government have not yet made their final decisions on the level of public expenditure for 1984. When these decisions are made, they will be published in the normal way.

I take it that the statement made by the Taoiseach was not in accordance with Government policy because it seems that policy has not been decided at this point.

11.