Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
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Question 66: To ask the Minister for Finance if he plans to undertake a study of the impact of the maturity of SSIAs on the economy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18418/05]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The matter is subject to ongoing consideration within my Department. The impact of maturing SSIA funds on consumer demand in 2006 and 2007 is difficult to estimate and will depend on how the accumulated savings are spent or saved, how that portion of an individual's income that was previously saved in SSIAs is used, and the extent to which savings are rolled over into other investment products. The economic effect will also depend on the state of the economy in 2007, when the bulk of SSIA funds — around 55% — mature. To date a number of reports have been prepared regarding the impact of the SSIAs by, among others, Goodbody Stockbrokers, Lansdowne Market Research, the Irish Mortgage Corporation and the Bank of Ireland. However, there is no consensus in these reports as to how these funds may be used. It is inevitable that there will be a lot of uncertainty about the likely outcomes. As a scheme such as the SSIA has not existed previously, it is not possible to draw on experience as a basis for anticipating the impact the maturing accounts will have on the economy.