Kathryn Reilly (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 5:

In page 7, subsection (2), between lines 4 and 5, to insert the following:?(a) prioritise the generation of economic growth, job creation and delivery of high quality public services,?.

This series of amendments has been designed to ensure the Government's plan, in the event that there is a breach of the austerity rules, would take into account "the generation of economic growth, job creation and delivery of high quality public services". The aim is to avoid the plan becoming a box-ticking exercise. If we are to run the economy by rules, we should include rules which would ensure our economic policies were designed to reduce poverty or create jobs. Any such plan should be realistic and any plan which did not take these goals into account would be doomed to fail. The current plan just includes compliance with the budgetary rules, with annual targets for the size and nature of revenue and expenditure measures to be taken and how they relate to different sectors. While this is required to meet the rules under the treaty, it does not negate or rule out the possibility of including in the plan measures that would lead to economic growth, job creation, a reduction in poverty and the delivery of high quality public services. While taking account of these targets, it is important to take cognisance of what is happening in the real domestic economy and to citizens. We cannot continue to chase targets that will further depress economic growth. Any such plan should be brought before the Oireachtas and fully debated.

Amendment No. 5 seeks to require the Government to take into account issues such as the generation of economic growth, job creation and the delivery of high quality public services when drafting a plan to meet the debt and deficit targets contained in the Bill. Amendment No. 6 aims to strengthen the requirement on the Government to include these important social and economic indicators. Amendment No. 7 seeks to broaden the scope of the plan to include an impact assessment of any measure proposed in respect of key social indicators such as income equality, social inclusion and poverty reduction. Amendment No. 8 seeks to place an obligation on the Government to carry out equality and anti-poverty impact assessments of all expenditure and revenue measures proposed in the plan. Amendment No. 9 would require the seeking of the approval of the Oireachtas for any plan rather than Government approval only. The purpose of the amendment is to ensure there would be adequate debate, public scrutiny and parliamentary oversight in the final agreement of the plan. Given the significant impact its measures will have on the social and economic well being of the State and its people, such a debate and public and parliamentary oversight are crucial. Amendment No. 11 seeks to introduce a provision that would allow a future Government to derogate from the debt and deficit rules if it believed that doing so would be in the best social and economic interests of the State. If the Government did so decide, the amendment would place a requirement on the Government to explain why that was the case.