Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. One of the output targets for 2020 was the summer economic statement, which gives us an indication in regard to the budgetary parameters, but it was not published. At that time, there was no communication with Opposition spokespersons that a normal statement would not be published, which is bad form. Some of us have just come from a meeting of the Committee on Budgetary Oversight, where the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council stated it is not satisfied at all that such a statement was not provided. It makes the point that it provides outlooks over a five-year period and that the Department of Finance has the ability, capability and wherewithal to do the same. It believes policies need to be guided not just by what is happening this year or in the next 24 months, but over the next period.

There is an acceptance that things are in flux and that the July provision of €8 billion or €9 billion of expenditure would have been added to what was presented. However, there could and should have been a summer economic statement. Will the Minister of State provide a justification as to why it was not published, given that, over the summer, there was more calm within the economy than there would have been in March-April when the pandemic hit us?