2665. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to confirm both in percentage and in clear monetary terms the value of the ‘levy’ on his Department's expenditure, that was required to be communicated to the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation on or before the deadline of 17 July 2026, (details supplied) and if he will make a statement on the matter. [60670/26]

In April 2026, my Department was notified of the proposed expenditure levy of €26 million to be applied in 2027, as a result of the spending overruns in the Department of Education and Youth in 2026. The proposed levy will be based on my Department's current expenditure allocation for 2026 of €1.98 billion.

As part of the Budget 2027 negotiation process, my Department has been asked to identify efficiencies and reforms to determine how the levy will be applied across the Department.

My Department is continuing to engage with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service reform and Digitalisation on efficiency and reform proposals. These proposals will form the basis of discussions for the 2027 Budget Estimates process.