Pearse Doherty
Question:302. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide statistical information and costings (details supplied) in tabular form. [28667/20]
View answerTuesday, 6 October 2020
Questions (302)
Written answers
The July Stimulus set out a range of tax and expenditure measures to provide targeted supports to stimulate activity across the economy, provide assistance to firms and to support employment. Table 1 below sets out the 2021 cost of tax and expenditure measures announced as part of the July Stimulus.
Table 1 – 2021 Cost of July Stimulus Measures (€bn)
|
€bn |
|
|
Tax Measures |
0.32 |
|
Stay and Spend Initiative |
0.14 |
|
VAT |
0.16 |
|
Cycle-to-Work |
0.002 |
|
Interest reduction on tax liabilities |
0.02 |
|
Current Expenditure Measures |
1.37 |
|
Pandemic Unemployment Payment |
0.4 |
|
Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme |
0.9 |
|
Labour Market Activation Measures |
0.07 |
|
Capital Expenditure Measures |
0.1 |
|
Capital Works |
0.1 |
In addition to this, there will be significant further Covid-19 related expenditure allocated for 2021 as part of the Budget 2021 process. Ensuring the provision of the necessary funding to support our people and key public services over the next phase of the COVID-19 pandemic will be the key priority in Budget 2021. In light of this, work is ongoing in assessing the impact of further Covid-19 costs in 2021. As set out in a previous Parliamentary Question, on a no policy change (NPC) basis, and assuming an improved position in relation to employment next year based on the latest macroeconomic projections, it is estimated that there could be a cost of approximately €9 billion in relation to Covid-19 expenditure in 2021. This figure is inclusive of the carryover costs of the July Stimulus set out above. However, this amount is subject to significant uncertainty, with a need in particular to work through in detail the requirements for the Health service next year and also the impact on income and employment supports of the impact of the pandemic on the labour market. This work in relation to estimating the NPC position will be finalised this week and reflected in the White Paper - Estimates of Receipts and Expenditure to be published on 9th October.
Further information will also be set out in detail in the 2021 Expenditure Report. It should be noted that these pressures will be dealt with separately from core expenditure increases and given their scale, will form a significant part of the overall package of budgetary measures for 2021.
As is usual, there are a number of pre-commitments in relation to core expenditure for Budget 2021. Table 2 below sets out these current and capital core expenditure pre-commitments for Budget 2021, totalling €2 billion. Work is ongoing in finalising these costs, and on the emerging core expenditure position for this year for this year, as part of the normal budgetary process.
Table 2 – Pre-Committed Core Expenditure 2021 (€bn)
|
€bn |
|
|
Total Pre-Committed |
2.0 |
|
Demographics |
0.5 |
|
Carryover of Budget 2020 Current Expenditure Measures |
0.2 |
|
PSSA |
0.4 |
|
Capital - NDP |
1.0 |