Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy has asked a number of questions and put a twist on what I said. Legally, I cannot transfer all the money from sales of State assets to the balance sheet this year. It is not a matter of choice but a requirement under EUROSTAT rules. On deficit reductions, some countries - I will not refer to individual states by name - proposed an enormous sale of state assets as a bookkeeping exercise to balance their books. The problem with this approach is that while balancing the books in one year through income from such sales is well and good, what does one do the following year? EUROSTAT requires states to use a mathematical formula based on the dividend paid by the State company in question as the maximum a country can account for on its books on an annualised basis. We must comply with European regulations in these matters.

The proceeds from the sale of State assets will give us the capacity to introduce a further stimulus plan. Some of the very good projects cited by the Deputy could be considered when we receive additional Exchequer moneys to spend on capital works.

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