Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent)
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145. To ask the Minister for Finance the steps he will take to address income inequality in the forthcoming budget 2016, taking into account the widening gap between the wealthy and poor; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32874/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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As indicated by data and research from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) respectively, income inequality in Ireland has remained broadly stable over the past decade. The Gini coefficient is a measure of income inequality where 0 represents a situation where all households have an equal income and 1 indicates that one household has all of national income. According to the CSO, the Gini coefficient for household disposable income in Ireland was 31.3% in 2013, the latest year for which data is available. This compares to 31.7% in 2004 and the Gini coefficient has remained within a narrow range over 2004 to 2013. In international terms, the Gini coefficient for disposable income in Ireland was marginally below the euro area average in 2013.

Regarding wealth inequality, comprehensive data on household wealth in Ireland, including assets and liabilities, was published by the CSO in early 2015. This is the first time such data has been collected. The same data has been collected across the entire euro area according to a standardised methodology. These data indicate that wealth inequality in Ireland for 2013, as measured by the Gini Coefficient, is lower than the euro area average. The results also show that wealth is less concentrated at the top of the distribution here than the euro area average. Central Bank analysis of these data also indicates that while wealth inequality has increased since 2011, it is lower than in 2006, the earliest period for which data are available.

As regards Budget 2016, the Deputy will be aware that it is not the practice of the Minister for Finance to discuss in advance any measures which may be under consideration.