Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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242. To ask the Minister for Finance the extent to which he and his Department continue to monitor the potential affects of Brexit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41553/16]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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247. To ask the Minister for Finance the steps his Department can take to counter the likely negative impact of Brexit on this country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41558/16]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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310. To ask the Minister for Finance the extent to which remedial steps can be taken to address the impact of Brexit on the economy as envisaged in the recent report by his Department in conjunction with the ESRI and the Department of the Taoiseach. [34564/16]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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341. To ask the Minister for Finance the extent to which he and his Department expect to be in a position to counter any negative economic impact arising from Brexit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1963/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 242, 247, 310 and 341 together.

The Department of Finance has been assessing and preparing for the impact of Brexit since well before the referendum on 23 June 2016. Work was carried out in the Department to assess the potential economic and financial sector implications arising, including through the ESRI-Department of Finance research programme study published in November 2015 titled 'Scoping the Possible Economic Implications of Brexit on Ireland'. This work was undertaken within the whole-of-Government framework established by the Department of the Taoiseach.

Following the result of the UK referendum and to prepare for the forthcoming negotiations, work has been intensified across the whole of Government level including in my own Department. A new Brexit Unit within the EU and International Division  was established in July 2016 to oversee and coordinate this work and to act as a key liaison point with the Department of the Taoiseach, in particular. In addition, the Department of Finance staff complement in the Irish Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels has been strengthened. 

As part of Budget 2017, the Department of Finance published the Economic and Fiscal outlook which presented a full macroeconomic projection including updated estimates of economic growth, the public finances and the fiscal space, taking account inter alia of the impact of Brexit. In addition, the Department published detailed analysis of sectoral exposure to Brexit across the economy.  More recently, the Department has worked with the ESRI to deepen the macroeconomic analysis and a report titled 'Modelling the Medium to Long Term Potential Macroeconomic Impact of Brexit on Ireland' was published in November 2016.

Budget 2017 included a number of measures to respond to the challenges of Brexit, to mitigate future risks, and to support any opportunities that might arise. These include measures to support SMEs, entrepreneurship, agri-food and Irish exporters. These measures are an important first step in mitigating the impacts on the Irish economy from the economic implications of Brexit. More information on these measures is available in the Budget documentation.

The best and most immediate policy under the Government's control to counter the likely negative economic impacts of Brexit is to prudently manage the public finances in order to ensure that Ireland's economy continues to remain competitive in the face of future economic headwinds. In this context, Budget 2017 signalled a lower debt target of 45 per cent of GDP for the mid-to-late 2020s. This will help to provide an additional fiscal 'shock absorber' capacity to the public finances to help withstand any shock including the impact of Brexit. This will complement the contingency or 'rainy day' fund to be established following the achievement of a balanced budget in 2018 which will help provide a further counter-cyclical buffer.

The work being done by the Department, including the work of Minister of State Murphy T.D. who has responsibility for Financial Services, will be an important input to ensuring that Ireland will be in a position to counter any negative economic impact arising from Brexit and to ensure that Ireland's  interests are protected in the upcoming negotiations at EU level.  The Department will continue to monitor the economic impacts, to carry out relevant analysis and to frame budgetary policy advice in this new context.