Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 22 November 2023
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach
General Scheme of the Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2023: Discussion
Mr. John McCarthy:
I will have a go at the first one. What we are thinking is that if there is a deterioration in the economy, we may want to keep money to support the domestic economy rather than put it into this fund, so we need to create a situation in which we can reduce the contributions. If there is a cyclical downturn or a structural downturn, for instance, if corporate tax receipts were to fall off a cliff and remain permanently low, that is what we mean when we talk about continuing difficulties. In the past, 1% of GNP was put into the National Pensions Reserve Fund, and that was it. What we are trying to create, on this occasion, is the ability to reduce the amount depending on the state of the economy or the state of the public finances.