Vol. 435 No. 5
54 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Finance if he will give details of the projected VAT and Irish financial contributions to the EC over the period 1994 to 1999; the structural cohesion and other EC transfers to Ireland over the same period; and the total balance in Ireland's favour.
The Deputy will appreciate that it is not possible to give precise figures for Ireland's contributions to or receipts from the EC budget over the period specified because of the number of variables involved in the calculation of the amounts. In relation to our contributions to the EC, our annual payment is a function of a number of factors such as GNP, the size of our VAT base, the level of our trade with third countries and the quantum of Community expenditure itself while, on the receipts side, payments under the EAGGF, for example, are influenced by factors such as annual farm price agreements, world market prices, dollar/ecu exchange rates, etc.
