Committee Reports > List of Committees > Dáil > 1985 > Committee on Public Expenditure > Report - Control of Capital Projects

APPENDIX 6

LETTER TO DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE FROM CLERK TO THE COMMITTEE

Re. Sub-Committee on Capital Projects

I have been asked by the sub-Committee Chairman, Mr. Liam Fitzgerald, T.D., to thank you for your letter of 8 November 1984 on the follow-up to your Department’s Circular 1/83 on “Capital Expenditure in the Public Sector”. The letter was considered at the sub-Committee meeting held on Thursday, 22 November.

The sub-Committee noted from your letter (third paragraph on the second page) that the Department of Finance is reviewing progress made on capital investment appraisal and project management techniques and that there are indications of growing awareness among Departments and agencies of the need for improved capital control procedures since Circular 1/83 was issued.

Given that Circular 1/83 was issued in March, 1983 the sub-Committee has now requested the following information:

(1) Were the criteria laid down in the circular applied in the case of allocations for capital projects included in the 1984 and 1985 Public Capital Programmes?

(2) Can your Department be more specific in regard to the assessment of the effectiveness of the arrangements now in place in Departments and agencies i.e. would it be possible to say in relation to specific capital projects whether appraisal and management techniques have been developed since the circular was issued (where these did not exist already)?

(3) In line with penultimate paragraph of your letter it would be appreciated if your Department could provide the sub-Committee with detailed samples of capital projects which your Department would regard as (a) generally satisfactory from the appraisal/management viewpoint and (b) less than satisfactory (say, five of each - see table attached).

It would be appropriate to include a statement on the extent of control exercised by the Department of Finance and/or the Office of Public Works in the projects.

As the sub-Committee will shortly wish to hear evidence from your Department on its role in the area of capital expenditure it would be appreciated if you could reply not later than 6 December.

____________________

P.M. Judge

Clerk to the Committee