Dr. Mark Cassidy:

The Deputy makes a very important distinction. The one-off expenditure has very different and more benign effects on the budgetary position. Essentially, it will lead to a one-off level shift up in the deficit but will not lead to permanent pressures which are repeated year after year. That is very important and we see that when we expect the budget deficit to reduce to 4% next year. That is because of an assumption that these temporary measures will not be in place and it shows how they are removed. That is why we feel very confident in supporting the temporary measures that have been introduced. They are affordable. We think we will need to see a reduction in the public sector debt ratio at the right time. We think economic growth will bear the brunt of that. We think any policies that would restrict growth in the future, therefore, would be counterproductive. We think, in addition to the impact of economic growth, that that budget balance will need to get down to balance and, if the economy gets back to full employment, ideally something of a small surplus. The public finance position, the general government balance position, in addition to debt, will be important for that. The balance, that is, what government expenditure goes on, is also critically important in that regard. Capital spending is much more conducive to economic growth than current spending. The multipliers, that is, the amount by which an additional €1 million of government spending leads to longer term growth, are much higher - about 2.5 times higher - when spent on capital investment.