Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 22 July 2020
99. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Finance his views on establishing a national wealth fund which would see the State make investments which would be collectively owned by Irish persons that would have the right to draw down funds over the course of their lifetime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17587/20]
View answerMy views regarding the establishment of any Fund are based on whether it would create any additional value to the State. As described by the Deputy, I believe that the proposed National Wealth Fund would in essence duplicate the role currently fulfilled on behalf of the State by State Savings products and the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF).
State Savings products, which are managed by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) already enable personal savers to invest their money in the State. Savings invested in this way are available to the Exchequer to fund Government expenditure. They form part of the National Debt of Ireland and repayment of all State Savings money is a direct, unconditional obligation of the Irish Government.
ISIF, on the other hand, is Ireland’s Sovereign Wealth Fund whose assets are held on behalf of Irish citizens by the Minister for Finance. The Fund which is also controlled and managed by the NTMA has a “double bottom line” mandate to invest on a commercial basis in a manner designed to support economic activity and employment in Ireland. ISIF is an important state asset in responding to emerging economic challenges facing the country. In this connection, on foot of a Government Decision, the ISIF launched its refocussed Investment Strategy, ISIF 2.0 in February 2019 to prioritise investments in support Project Ireland 2040. The five priorities of this refocused Investment Strategy are Regional Development, Housing, Indigenous Businesses, Climate Change and sectors adversely affected by Brexit.
More recently, following my review of potential supports for Ireland's economy during the COVID-19 pandemic, I asked ISIF to create a €2 billion sub-portfolio, known as the Pandemic Stabilisation and Recovery Fund, to focus on investment in medium and large scale enterprises in Ireland which were adversely affected by the pandemic.
