Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

In climate, countries are being asked to adjust downwards, potentially year on year, at a time when we know major transitions involved in climate require front-loaded expenditure.

Some of that front-loaded expenditure, as we have mentioned, is not going to be reflected in four- or seven-year profit or growth figures. It is going to be preventative in that it will be reflected in the ten- to 15-year consequence. There has been an impact. We saw it because lots of countries have parked capital expenditure for a long period.

The reason I am pulling out these impacts is so we can ensure we do not make the same mistakes. Another area where we saw them was on housing, specifically in Ireland. The fiscal rules were cited as the reason for adopting a leasing approach rather than a public investment or public housing approach for many years, and rather than purchase or construction, which is a heavier expenditure upfront but is actually fiscally more prudent than leasing.