Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Government will give detailed consideration to how the target will be reached over the coming months. The Exchequer returns to the end of May were published last week. They showed that taxes were €446 million or 2.9% ahead of profile while overall net voted expenditure was €156 million or 0.9% below profile. The Department of Social Protection returns showed that net voted expenditure was €138 million or 2.7% below profile, as Deputy Ó Snodaigh noted. This includes the impact of higher PRSI receipts of €108 million in the year to date, due obviously to the additional number of people who are at work, paying PRSI and, as we have seen from the tax returns, paying income tax as well. Overall expenditure on all schemes, services and administration in the Department is under profile by €27 million, or 0.3%.

The better than expected performance of PRSI income mirrors that of taxes and is evidence of a slowly emerging recovery in the economy that everyone hopes will continue. In particular, the reduction of nearly 33,000 in the number on the live register year on year to the end of May is encouraging. The Department and I are committed to an unrelenting focus on job creation. This is the best way of reducing welfare expenditure, while freeing resources to assist the vulnerable and deal with the demographic pressures of an ageing population.

The budget for next year will not be announced until October. As the Deputy rightly stated, I will not discuss its details, nor will I speculate on the overall adjustment to be made. However, it is important that we continue to push the development and roll-out of Intreo in order that people can be brought into employment and avail of education, training and work experience. This year the Department is spending approximately €1.1 million on schemes ranging from the community employment scheme to Tús and the back to education scheme. This is an important investment in the country's future. Obviously, we will watch the data closely between now and October.

I regularly meet organisations that have an interest in social protection matters. I will meet 39 community and voluntary organisations on 4 July. I will listen carefully, as I do every year, to their opinions on the priorities for 2015. I will ensure the issues they will raise at the meeting are brought to the attention of the Government.

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