Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 February 2013
47. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Finance the timescale projected for the Budget later in 2013 in respect of 2014; if he will provide an assessment of the implications of bringing the date forward; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7627/13]
View answerIn 2011, EU countries launched the European Semester cycle as agreed at the European Council in June 2010. The aim of the Semester is that EU-level discussions on fiscal policy, macroeconomic imbalances, financial sector issues, and growth-enhancing structural reforms will now always take place before governments draw up their draft budgets and submit them to national parliamentary debate in the second half of the year. Additionally, the so-called "six-pack" of economic governance legislative measures came into effect in 2011 in order to enhance economic and budgetary coordination across the EU. The position on the date of budgets raised by the Deputy is as set out in section 6.4 of the Budgetary Reform Chapter of the Medium-Term Fiscal Statement published last November.
Another draft economic and budgetary regulation, part of the so-called “two-pack”, will introduce a common budgetary timeline for all euro area Member States.
When this regulation is adopted and in force, all euro area Member States will be required to publish their draft budget for central government and the main parameters of all other General Government sub-sectors no later than 15 October each year with the final budget adopted or fixed upon annually by 31 December. This means that much of our existing budgetary process, which is currently completed in the first week of December, will have to be finalised earlier in the year.
Government will be considering the implications of these reforms in the coming months and once this requirement is in force, I can assure the Deputy that all necessary action will be taken to ensure that Ireland complies with the new requirements.
