Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I call on Mr. Coffey to comment on this point. This is my final question but this point is tangential. My colleagues have discussed the concentration of corporation tax receipts. It is well known that nine companies or groups account for nearly 40%. There is an argument that we should not be using those receipts, or at least a certain portion of them, on repeated expenditure or tax cuts. I would rather look at the argument from a different point of view. Let us suppose we stripped away foreign direct investment and Ireland had the European average for foreign direct investment. Would our tax receipts ring alarm bells given the fact that our domestic sector is not operating at the level it should be according to European norms? Does foreign direct investment mirror another problem?

My last point is separate but it relates to the potential for overheating the economy. Mr. Coffey provided analysis on overheating in the short term. One of the threats suggested is the shortage of housing. Would direct investment in housing not curb the potential for overheating in the economy?

This is tied to my previous point.