Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Forecasts by their very nature do not provide certainty; they are forecasts. I think people are reasonable and understand there is more risk of those forecasts being significantly out this year than any other year. However, it is important for the Department to Finance to note where it sees the economy going.

The Minister of State should take us to the next stage. The summer economic statement has not been published. I acknowledge things were in flux and I also acknowledge the work going on within the Department. In regard to the budget that will be announced on Tuesday, the Department planned not to provide medium-term forecasts.

At the time of probably the highest level of expenditure we will see in the State, which is needed to stimulate the economy, support incomes and so on, the Department will not publish its forecasts of where it sees the economy in three, four or five years, as it normally would. If the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council and others are able to put on paper where they see things going, surely, as part of the budgetary process, the Department of Finance should give an indication, however right or wrong it might be, of where it sees economic recovery in the medium term as opposed to giving us what is planned, which is a very short-term view.