Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 23 September 2025

Committee on Budgetary Oversight

Pre-Budget Engagement (Resumed)

2:00 am

Dr. Robert Kelly:

The rationale the Chair outlined is perfect. It is then about making the choice that if there is a fixed envelope of spending overall, this is this sector you wish to support. That is a political choice. If you stay within the 5% rule, you then cannot do some of the other redistributional stuff. That is exactly what the budget process is about.