Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The answer in terms of economic activity and achieving full employment and a balanced budget and resources even for a rainy day fund is "Yes" but that is not to say that the fiscal space for future budgets, apart from the forthcoming one, might narrow. It is difficult to predict because it is only one of a number of what I would call moving parts. I have great respect for my forecasting unit in the Department but it is usually conservative in its forecasts so maybe we will grow stronger in future years if the domestic economy can pick up. One of the big factors driving the Irish economy is domestic demand. Domestic demand is largely based on consumer sentiment or, to put it simply, confidence. If Brexit affects confidence, it is very hard to measure what the knock-on effect of that is in terms of consumer demand and economic activity domestically.