Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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I completely accept that. I want to ask about the margin of compliance. The Fiscal Advisory Council has told this committee that the net fiscal space is €650 million. I understand from the summer economic statement, and page 20 of the report compiled by the Fiscal Advisory Council, that that is the case and the two figures are the same. The difference is that the Government has taken a decision to reduce the net fiscal space by €150 million in what the Minister has called "the margin of compliance" in an effort to reach the medium-term objective, MTO. We do not need to reach the MTO to abide by the fiscal rules. Can he confirm that the net fiscal space is €650 million to meet the fiscal rules?