Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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20. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if there are expenditure plans in order meet the challenges and avail of the opportunities in view of the fact that the UK is leaving the Single Market and in all likelihood the customs union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3429/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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While the specific impact of Brexit will be determined by the nature of the new relationship between the EU and the UK, I am confident that the economy is resilient and that appropriate fiscal policies are now in place.  My objective is to protect and consolidate the progress of recent years which has seen economic growth become more firmly established, and the public finances now on the path to sustainability.

Against that background, the Minister for Finance and I were able to deliver a Budget for 2017 setting out our approach to Brexit and to build a national economic response.  For the third year in succession it has been possible to increase resources for public services and infrastructure.  The gross voted expenditure allocation of €58.1 billion in 2017 will be over 3 per cent higher than the 2016 allocation. 

On the expenditure side, resources have been allocated towards areas that may be significantly impacted by Brexit, in particular in our regional and rural communities.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine will see an increase in its allocation of almost 9%, with, as outlined in the Expenditure Report 2017, funding for the Rural Development Programme set to rise to €601 million in 2017.

The increased allocation to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine also allows for continued investment in Foodwise 2025 to aid the development of Ireland's agrifood sector.

Funding provided to the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs will help fund the Action Plan on Rural Development.

Based on the objective to grow the number of jobs supported by the enterprise agencies, additional resources have been provided for Enterprise Ireland and the IDA specifically to help enterprises to deal with the impact of Brexit.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Government has adopted a whole-of-Government approach to the challenges posed by Brexit, led by the Cabinet Committee on Brexit which the Taoiseach chairs and of which I am a member.   In addition, the expenditure implications of Brexit will form part of the considerations in the forthcoming Spending Review and the Mid-Term Review of the Capital Plan.