Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank my colleagues on both sides of the House who contributed to the debate. It has been a useful and worthwhile exercise that has demanded that every Minister answerable to the House set out his or her priorities for the year. It was important that priorities were set out in plenary session, not only in order that Members could hear them but also that they could assess the Government's success, or otherwise, in pursuing them. The great majority of speakers in the debate were on the Government benches or the Front Benches of the various parties. This is important as it allows Members to tease out how the priorities relate to their constituencies and areas of policy interest.

As we stated when we published the medium-term economic review at the time of our exit from the bailout programme in December last, the key responsibility of the Government is to continue to make, on a brick-by-brick basis, progress in the economy. That progress can really only be tested by measuring the number of jobs created and the confidence that I hope is being restored in the economy. The fact that the National Treasury Management Agency was able to publish today the very significant news of the sale of the ten year bond, at an historic low level of 2.9%, is to be noted. It was the first ten year bond sale since 2010 and is another example of investor confidence in Ireland.

Ireland is a small, open, trading economy that is very much determined by and based on the level of investment and economic interest of major trading partners. As a small, open, trading economy, investor confidence is king. We will not get money back into Ireland or enjoy construction and other opportunities unless we have a sound financial basis. The clear commitment of the Government, as set out in medium-term economic plan, is to eliminate the deficit by 2018. We are committed to continuing to make progress next year and thereafter on reducing the deficit, which was our undoing in 2008 in 2009. I very much hope the Government will continue to work with colleagues on all sides of the House in pursuing its objectives and, ultimately, being accountable for these objectives as we proceed this year. I thank all Members for their contributions.

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