Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The buffer the Minister talks about is made up of real cuts affecting real people. It is millions of euro of cuts that will cause hardship and pain, as well as additional taxes. I am disappointed that the Minister is going beyond the troika target of 5.1%. We have been led to believe by the Government that the troika is making us go into the high 4% region. The Tánaiste is correct that we should not go beyond that target, because it is counterproductive. The Government’s projection of a growth rate of 3% for this year has not materialised. We are unlikely to see even a 1% growth rate by the end of the year. The levels of austerity are counterproductive. We should meet our targets but in a way that delivers growth. Going beyond the target is a sure recipe for dampening growth and domestic demand while inflicting pain on the people. We need to pay attention to the citizens, to whom we have a responsibility to deliver, not just the markets.

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