Committee Reports > List of Committees > Dáil > 1950 > Committee of Public Accounts > Interim and Final Report - Appropriation Accounts 1947 - 1948

APPENDIX IX.

GARDA SIOCHANA—REPLACEMENT OF TRANSPORT

Rúnaí,

Coiste um Chuntais Phoibli.

I enclose Notes on two matters with respect to which I undertook to supply the Committee with further information.

The explanatory note in the Appropriation Account sets out the position correctly. Transport is replaced where necessary, with the sanction of the Department of Finance, when it is no longer economic to keep vehicles in service, regard being had to age, mileage travelled, maintenance and running expenses, the auction sale value and the advantages, including financial advantages, likely to result from substituting new for old vehicles. The provision in the Estimate is no more than an informed guess as to probable requirements. Actual expenditure is affected by a number of uncertain factors, e.g. the extent of police activities requiring transport, the outlay on spare parts, the supply position in respect of spare parts and of new cars and the date of delivery. In the accounting period in question, there was a substantial saving in running expenses in consequence of a number of cars on order having been delivered earlier in the year than had been expected.

The amount required to meet repayable advances to officers to enable them to purchase cars was also considerably less than what was expected. The provision made, viz. £8,000 was based on information supplied by the Divisional and District Officers as to their probable requirements, but when it came to the point, many of the officers who had thought of applying for repayable advances did not do so, with the result that slightly less than £4,000 was actually required.

A sum of £18,900 was provided for replacement of transport. The actual expenditure was £19,850, which included the cost of some cars for which provision was made in the 1946/47 Estimate but which were not delivered in that year.