Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

We are well in position to achieve these milestones. Next year, we will have reached 0.5% of GNP. Members berated me when I first took up this area of responsibility, claiming we needed to be credible on achieving the target. I stated, even prior to the setting of the 2012 target date, that we needed to be on 0.5% in the next two years to prove we could make the jump to 0.7%. The next Government will be in a good position to see this through to the final target of 0.7%. I am proud the Department of Finance has agreed to a historic seven-year multi-annual agreement in funding to be made available to Irish Aid. That is the kind of predictability we need to expand this ambitious programme.

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