Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

The Minister's statement of this morning contains a two-line reference to a four-year budgetary plan. Was this budgetary plan requested by the European Commission? Has it been agreed with the European Commission and who will prepare the plan? Everybody agrees that the growth forecast previously used by the Minister erred on the side of optimism. Will the four-year plan be drawn up independently, as suggested by some people?

Will the Minister provide, as was done in the United Kingdom prior to the general election for George Osborne and Vincent Cable, a direct line of information to me, as Labour Party spokesperson on finance and other finance spokespersons, from the Department of Finance and whoever else is drawing up the plan?

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