Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 222: To ask the Minister for Finance if he will deal with a matter regarding the black economy (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48139/10]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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My Department does not produce estimates of the size of the informal economy nor of the estimated loss to the exchequer arising from such activities. Internationally, a considerable amount of research has been undertaken in this area but, by definition, it is always difficult to quantify the scale of the informal economy.

Having said that, the Central Statistics Office in compiling estimates of national income, and in line with best international practice, makes adjustments to the figures in order to control for informal activity in some sub-sectors of the economy. This is done at a very detailed level, with the result that an overall economy-wide estimate is not available.