Mr. John McGeady:

We would suggest the best approach to budgeting is to disentangle windfall gains from recurring stable revenue, so there is transparency and so we do not become dependent - which it looks like we have become - on corporate tax windfall gains.

These gains have already been highlighted by the Department of Finance, Revenue and the Central Bank. We know what they are. They may continue for a number of years, but it is inevitable that they are going to decline. We see with the reforms at international level, such as the OECD's BEPS reforms, that we are likely to see those windfall revenues that arise from quirks of our tax system eventually moving offshore and elsewhere.

Given that, we need to recognise that there is an underlying budget deficit and it is very concerning. Breaking them apart therefore creates that transparency and allows the Government to make some decisions around being able to use those windfall gains when they are here for one-off investment in our social infrastructure while then ensuring our current expenditure is funded through stable recurring revenue. Overall, we need to look to a future where we have an adequate stable recurring tax take and to do that we really need to broaden the tax base.