Irish Fiscal Advisory Council

Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Questions (250)

Micheál Martin

Question:

250. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Minister for Finance the position regarding the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46772/14]

View answer

Written answers

The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council was established on a statutory basis on the 31 December 2012 under the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2012. The Act sets out the Council's functions, which can only be amended through primary legislation.

Further, Regulation (EU) 473/2013 introduced a requirement that draft budgets and the stability programme update must be based on macroeconomic forecasts that are produced or endorsed by an independent body. This endorsement function has been set out in an amendment to the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2012 and has been assigned to the Fiscal Council.

Since its establishment, the Council has published seven Fiscal Assessment Reports, all of which can be found on the Fiscal Council's website.

In its most recent report, the Fiscal Council acknowledged that Ireland is likely to record a deficit for 2015 of less than the 3% of GDP ceiling and the fiscal stance adopted in Budget 2015 is conducive to prudent economic and budgetary management. I responded to the Fiscal Assessment Report on 9 January 2015 and this response is published on my Department's website.