Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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82. To ask the Minister for Finance the projected annual cost for each year to 2030 of servicing the national debt under present assumptions for each year to 2030, in tabular from; the assumptions which are being made including the interest rate; the amount by which the repayments would increase for every 1% increase in the interest rate, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22657/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The most recent forecasts of both National Debt interest and General Government interest expenditure are for the period 2017 to 2021 and are contained in the recently published Stability Programme Update (SPU).

The relevant information is contained in Table A3, Annex 1 on page 51 of the SPU and is replicated in the table.

National debt interest is the projected cash interest cost of the National debt. The General Government interest figures are prepared on an ESA10 accrual basis and represent the projected interest cost of the wider General Government measure of debt. Both sets of interest estimates are point-in-time estimates reflecting the position as at the end of the first quarter of 2017.

I am advised by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) that it does not disclose the interest rates at which it could potentially issue debt as to do so could negatively impact the Agency from raising funds for the Exchequer at the most competitive rates possible.

That said, the interest expenditure estimates reflected in the SPU are based on prudent assumptions and reflect an increase in rates over the forecast period. Finally, I should add that the vast bulk of Irish sovereign debt is at fixed interest rates, which also reduces the exposure of the economy in the event of higher rates.