Mr. A. J. Noonan:

I suggest it is a fragile confidence, but why is that? First, we are facing a budget. I concur with the point made earlier that it is a great idea to bring the budget forward. This saves the Government and us time and is positive. However, if, for example, something dramatic like a new tax is announced in the budget, confidence will be blown out of the water very quickly. Confidence will be gone and employers who are thinking of taking people on will decide to hang on and wait for another six months or a year. They then lose orders and the country loses out.