The Government will today give its 2003 spending proposals to three outside experts for intense scrutiny as Ministers prepare for the toughest pre-Budget negotiations in recent years.
The experts will spend a month examining the estimates for each Department and are expected to point to possible savings before the Cabinet gets down to detailed consideration of the estimates.
The former Governor of the Central Bank, Mr Maurice O'Connell; the former head of the Revenue Commissioners, Mr Dermot Quigley, and the former Secretary General of the Department of Enterprise and Employment, Mr Kevin Bonner, were asked by the Cabinet to take on the task in an effort to curb the rise in public spending.
After they report, officials from Finance will hold discussions with officials from each Department before Ministers hold individual meetings with the Minister for Finance, Mr Charlie McCreevy, to argue their case for spending increases.
The move comes as controversy continues over the €300 million worth of savings and charges being introduced for 2002. The Taoiseach yesterday rejected claims that these were "cuts". saying public spending would increase this year by 14 per cent. He called the changes, which include a substantial cut in Overseas Development Aid and various health charges, "internal adjustments".
The Government is to insist that Dail sittings over the next fortnight be confined strictly to discussion of the Nice Treaty despite Opposition demands for time to debate the new charges and cutbacks.
The Green Party yesterday called on the Government to extend Dáil sittings when the Dáil meets next week to allow debate on the series of announcements made by the Coalition Government over the holiday period designed to curb the growth in public spending.
The refusal to allow discussion of these changes further copperfasten's the Dail's reputation as "one of the least productive parliaments in the world", the party's Chief Whip Mr Dan Boyle said yesterday.
However the Government Chief Whip, Ms Mary Hanafin, said yesterday that all parties had agreed before the summer break that the sessions over the next two weeks be used exclusively to deal with the legislation to allow a second Nice Treaty referendum.
There will be no Order of Business, Question Time or other opportunity for the Opposition to attack the Government over the changes. The Dáil will then adjourn until October 9th.
The Green Party's Chief Whip, Mr Dan Boyle, has written to Ms Hanafin seeking an extension of Dáil sittings "to discuss and have Government Ministers account for a slew of policy statements made during the summer months".