Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

On the Croke Park agreement, I do not have a figure to hand. The various matters raised in the agreement are being implemented through the relevant bodies. The agreement contains an assurance that there can be no compulsory redundancies or pay reductions for those who are taking the benefit of the agreement. However, I have made it clear to the staff side that the savings that must be secured under the agreement must be more ambitious than those provided for and agreed therein.

On the issue of stimulus, there has been a substantial element of stimulus in the economy since 2008 through the extensive borrowing that has taken place to sustain the operations of the State. If this borrowing had not taken place, much more radical adjustments would have been required. The difficulty for the State is that we cannot rely indefinitely on this stimulus. It has brought too much pressure to bear on us in the financial markets and exposed the unsustainable character of our expenditure and taxation base.

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