Martin Mansergh (Fianna Fail)

I am on common ground with Senator McDowell. Indexation is a bad principle. I cannot believe that any Fine Gael Minister for Finance over the past 20 years would have accepted it or would accept it now. It removes some of the essential flexibility that a Minister needs in formulating a budget. In really good years one can exceed the requirements of indexation, which the Minister did over a number of budgets. In other years, one might match its requirements or one might be below its requirements. I recall a budget in 1987 in which there was no increase at all in reliefs, bands or allowances.