Dr. Nat O'Connor:

We are concerned about the cuts to front-line services because not only are people seeing cuts to their disposable incomes through tax changes and cuts to welfare but also those on lower incomes disproportionately rely on public services. Part of the reason we are proposing to make no further cuts is precisely because of the effect they have on communities. We also know these effects are often geographically concentrated. Unemployment is not neatly spread across Ireland. Unfortunately certain towns and communities are dealing with acute unemployment because of the numbers of people previously employed in construction or couples who worked for the same employer and lost their jobs, with the result that entire families suffer unemployment. Maintaining the public service is vital for people in that situation.

In regard to the Haddington Road agreement, we are pragmatic in what we are proposing because that arrangement has been agreed and will not be changed. We set out costed measures that would address the deficit without assuming we could undo that kind of agreement.