Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

Deputy McDonald is fully aware of the scale of the problems we face. This Government inherited an economic mess and we are determined to put it right. The step we must take by next year is to reduce our deficit to 8.6%, not because we want to but because we cannot fund anything more than that. The funders of last resort are here and were brought here by the previous Government. We are going to make adjustments to get us to 8.6%. The exact quantum of that has not yet been determined and that is something-----

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