Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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184. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the estimated net fiscal space available per annum in 2018 to 2022, inclusive, after all spending committed to date is factored into account; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7946/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Estimates of fiscal space for the period 2018 to 2021 can be found in Table A7 Annex 2 of the Budget 2017 book.  As the Deputy is aware, there are many individual economic and fiscal variables and other parameters involved in the computation of fiscal space, all of which are subject to change. Consequently, the information on projected fiscal space contained in the Budget book should be treated with the same caution as any forecast of a specific economic or fiscal indicator.

For the Deputy's convenience, the net fiscal space for the period 2018 to 2021 is set out in the following table.

Estimates for projected fiscal space have yet to be prepared for 2022.

Table 1.1 on Page 2 of the Mid-year Expenditure Report for 2016, outlines the indicative allocation of available net fiscal space for the period to 2021. For 2018 the allocation of this space is expected to be divided as follows:

- to €0.39bn for tax measures;

- €0.6bn for current expenditure measures and

- €0.5bn for capital expenditure measures (€0.19bn of fiscal space corresponds to €0.5bn of capital expenditure).

Expenditure Report 2017 sets out Ministerial Expenditure Ceilings for the period 2017 to 2019 and outlines the resources to be allocated in 2018 and 2019.

As outlined in Table 9 on Page 36 of Expenditure Report 2017, the carryover impact of Budget 2017 measures will have an additional cost in 2018 of approximately €0.4bn. This arises to be funded by reprioritisation of expenditure, for example under the Spending Review, or from the unallocated resources for 2018.

Finally, the Deputy may wish to note that it is estimated that in 2018 and 2019 an additional €0.3bn and €0.4bn respectively will be required over and above the Ministerial Expenditure Capital Ceilings published at Budget 2017 for the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Planning to fund capital investment measures under the Action Plan for Housing.