Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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57. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the type of cost benefit analysis which will be applied to the additional tax expenditures or new public spending which are being proposed to support business here in the context of Brexit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40417/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Discussions and negotiations around Budget 2018 are ongoing and there are guidelines in place for evaluation of all proposals.

Guidelines for the appraisal of spending projects and programmes are set out in the Public Spending Code (PSC). The PSC sets out the rules and procedures that maintain Value for Money standards across the public service. The PSC highlights the appraisal requirements for projects and programmes and provides central guidance on the application and evaluation methodologies including Cost Benefit Analysis. The aim of this methodological guidance is to ensure consistency of approach across sectors.

Similarly, the Department of Finance has strict guidelines for tax expenditure evaluation, the most recent of which were published in 2014 (2014 Guidelines for Tax Expenditure Evaluation). These guidelines are informed by international best practice and represent the evaluation framework that the Department uses in considering proposals for a new tax expenditure or in reviewing an existing measure. The evaluation questions contained in the guidelines are now applied to proposals for new tax reliefs (ex-ante evaluation) and to existing tax expenditures (ex-post evaluation).

Examples of the ex-ante evaluation questions include identifying the market failure the tax expenditure is thought to address, the tax expenditure’s likely economic impact and its expected costs. Examples of the ex-post evaluation questions include identifying its actual cost, its actual economic impact and its continued relevance . For tax expenditures with an annual cost of more than €50 million, the Guidelines provide for the undertaking of a cost-benefit analysis.

I can assure the Deputy that my officials are engaged in ongoing discussions with other Departments regarding the potential impacts of Brexit and how they might be best addressed. The Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, in developing measures to support business through Brexit, engages in extensive stakeholder consultation and review of relevant research to build a strong understanding of the needs of businesses. This work is carried out in collaboration with bodies such as SBCI, Department of Finance, Enterprise Ireland and the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine.  In carrying out this work it is, of course, a priority to ensure that proposals for new measures are robust and can be assessed to deliver their objectives on a value-for-money basis.