Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

From 2016 onwards, as the Deputy is aware, if Ireland has a structural deficit above 0.5% of GDP, it must implement a plan to bring it down to 0.5% of GDP over an agreed period and in accordance with accepted methodology that applies in each individual country. This certainly does not represent an additional cost of anything like €6 billion, about which the Deputy's colleague has been ranting for some time. It is incorrect to say the only way of dealing with a structural deficit is through expenditure cuts and tax increases. As I have pointed out on many occasions, the Government is dealing with the structural deficit through the obvious methods-----

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