asked the Minister for Finance the total amount of national lottery moneys disbursed through Government Departments in 1987; and if he will give in monetary terms and as a percentage, the amount thereof which was not in substitution for or supplement to, voted funds.

The following table shows the amounts of national lottery funds issued to Departments in 1987:

Although some of the projects which benefited from the 1987 allocations e.g. the Arts Council and Youth and Sports organisations, also received State support via Departmental Votes, it is not possible to say how much, if any, public money would have been applied for those purposes had lottery funding not been available. At a time when all public spending has been under intense scrutiny and even the most desirable programmes have had to be cut back, the availability of lottery funds enabled certain programmes to be continued and-or maintained at a level which might not otherwise have been possible.