169. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the contents of the Government’s medium-term economic framework; the reasons for the delay in producing the plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [73642/25]

Sentiment score: -0.10

It is a year since the new Dáil met and almost 11 months since the new Government was formed, yet we still do not have the medium-term economic plan that this Government is obliged to submit to Brussels. The media were briefed earlier this week that the Cabinet would approve the plan on Tuesday. Is that the case? Has the plan been approved and when will it be published?

Sentiment score: 0.11

There is simply no valid reason this plan has been delayed for several months. We were told to expect this plan in the summer. We expected to see it before the budget. We did not see it before the budget. I think at this point, politics and media management is getting in the way of the publication of the plan. It will be published tomorrow. That is an interesting and important point. It should have been published this week so the Dáil would have been able to scrutinise and interrogate the plan and have a full debate on it. It is not an abstract plan. It will affect every person, every business and every citizen of this country over the next four to five years. There is, unfortunately, a pattern here when it comes to fiscal management and the production of data. We in the Opposition all expressed concerns, for example, about the reliability of the information received on existing levels of service before the budget. There were no spending review papers this year. We have a range of different concerns. It is not acceptable to me that on the day of the recess, we are being told that a publication of this importance is being published when the Dáil rises.

Sentiment score: -0.02

The Minister has laid out the principles of what we can expect to see tomorrow. We knew that already. We understood that. Those of us who are members of the Oireachtas Committee on Budgetary Oversight met with the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, IFAC, this week. I know the Tánaiste met with them when he was appointed.

Sentiment score: 0.00

They were, rightly, scathing about this Government's approach to budgeting. They said that the Government was budgeting like there was no tomorrow. The Tánaiste acknowledged there are no forecasts or horizons beyond next year. That is no way to budget. Our view in Labour is that key to this plan is that we should be prepared to reflect on the plan. Perhaps the Tánaiste can confirm to the House this afternoon whether the plan will include the commitment to the introduction of a net spending rule, net of tax changes. That would be really important. The Tánaiste will recall that the previous Government introduced collectively a spending rule of 5%. That rule was more honoured in the breach. It was not based on any evidence at all or anchored in any plan. We should move to multi-annual budgeting in order to give those who are planning public service provision more certainty. Will the Minister commit to multi-annual budgeting in the plan tomorrow and to the introduction of a net spending rule? In other words, net of tax changes.

Sentiment score: 0.12