Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I have one very direct question for the Minister. The sale of State assets is not included in the Minister's update. How does the commitment to the troika to sell off €3 billion worth of State assets, some of which is to be used to pay down debts, figure in this arithmetic? Does it figure in this arithmetic? If so, when does the Minister have to sell these State assets? What is the timescale? Is it required this year? Is structural reform required, or is it simply a balance sheet amount of €3 billion, which the Minister can, if he wishes, get elsewhere? I tried to get a straight answer from the troika on this and could not get one, so I hope the Minister might go one better and tell us whether it is required under the stability programme that we sell these assets, or if it is simply required that we come up with €3 billion. In fact, it is €1.5 billion, given that the Minister says half the proceeds of the sale of State assets can be used for something else. Can we just come up with €1.5 billion elsewhere - for example, from the savings the Minister claims we have made as a result of the restructuring of the promissory note and the other debt deals - and therefore not sell State assets such as our forests? Could the Minister answer those questions and explain how the sale of State assets, the proceeds from them and so on fit into this arithmetic?