Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am happy the Deputy recognises the impact of the decision by Glanbia yesterday, which will create between 1,500 and 2,000 jobs between construction and family farming from north Cork to Louth, taking advantage of the fact that milk quotas will be gone by 2015. There will also be the opening of upgrades to the M11 and N7 roads. These public private partnerships are complex and technical, and it took quite a long time to get that through the gap, with the contract signed yesterday.

The Department of Finance yesterday published its Irish stability programme April 2013 update, which was the subject of some discussion at the economic affairs committee yesterday. It sets out the official macroeconomic and fiscal forecast for Ireland to 2016, and it is the first time we have gone as far as that. It is the first update of the Government's macroeconomic and fiscal projections since the budget in December last year. The economy returned to growth in 2011 and continued to grow in 2012. The Department of Finance forecast expects the expansion to continue into 2013, with GDP forecast to grow by 1.3% this year. There has been a modest revision in the headline GDP forecast published on budget day, and this revision incorporates changes to growth.

On the plus side and in order to keep fiscal targets in line, domestic demand has been revised upwards slightly, which is a help. that is on the back of recent high frequency data, leading to slightly more positive revisions to employment growth for 2013. That is offset by a downward trend in export growth because of difficulties in other countries, and the global economy clearly remains weak. On the fiscal front the Department of Finance remains confident that the fiscal strategy to reduce the budget deficit to below 3% of GDP by 2015 is on target. Overall, it is clear we are making progress with the public finances and returning the economy to growth.

The Government has yet to consider the question of the investment fund arising from the National Pensions Reserve Fund and the setting up of the NewERA entity for assessing potential opportunities. It will do that in the period ahead. The Minister for Finance has made it perfectly clear that where there is flexibility for the Government in the preparation for the budget for 2014 and beyond, it would be preferable to put this into investment for infrastructure, whether in school buildings, primary care centres, road developments or retrofitting private residential houses for energy efficiency, where jobs can be created or contractors employed and the consequent spend goes right through the economy.

The Government will focus on that issue.

Our priority must be to deal with the indigenous economy, which means restoring confidence to the Irish economy, thereby creating those jobs where people can see the effect of prudent economic management and effective spending. I share Deputy McGrath's view that investment should go into capital works that will create jobs. That is an issue the Government will focus on as we start to prepare the Estimates and discuss the investment strategy and the most effective use of that money.

The decision of the ECB to agree in respect of Ireland's programme has saved us €20 billion in borrowing over the next number of years and €1 billion in savings that the Government will consider how best to allocate in the time ahead.

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