As the Minister for Finance indicated in his contribution to the debate in the other House on the Estimates, there are a number of factors which must be taken into account in assessing our economic prospects as a small open economy and in framing our spending policy. As a result of a slower than anticipated global recovery in the second half of 2003, the official economic projections for Ireland's GDP growth in 2003 were revised downwards from 3.5% to 1.5% in August. Ireland is part of a monetary union where monetary policy is focused on ensuring a low inflation environment, with the ECB aiming to maintain the rate of inflation at close to 2% over the medium term. International competition is exerting downward pressure on goods prices and is likely to continue to do so for some time to come. International competition for jobs and investment is also becoming more intense.