Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2023
238. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Finance his plans to ensure that Budget 2023 is published in a format that is clear, accessible and in plain English, in order to ensure that the document is accessible for disabled people; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32629/23]
View answerPlanning for Budget 2024 is well underway and officials from the Department of Finance and the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform are working towards bringing it before the Oireachtas in the autumn.
The process behind each annual budget is comprehensive and includes a range of different publications and events that include the National Economic Dialogue and the Summer Economic Statement. On budget day itself there are a number of publications shared beyond the budget book itself. These include speeches, taxation measures and a guide for people which provides a high level overview of the measures being introduced and outlining how money will be raised in the year in question.
There is a dedicated section of the gov.ie website under the Department of Finance devoted to each budget containing all of the relevant documents and material. The link to that site, which covers Budget 2023 and previous years is available here; www.gov.ie/en/campaigns/budget/.
All of the publications for the budget are produced using the templates for government documents and using the public service plain English style guidelines and are informed by the communications toolkit for the public service.
This is done to make the budget and its implications as readily understandable for people as possible. The guidance for the public service has been developed under an approach promoted by the Centre for Excellence in Universal Design at the National Disability Authority.
The process by which the budget is produced and shared is currently being reviewed by officials in my Department in collaboration with the OGCIO and the Oireachtas. This is being done to take account of some of the changes that were necessitated during the pandemic which disrupted the traditional process of sharing the budget with members of the Oireachtas. Officials are also investigating opportunities to make the overall process more efficient, accessible and sustainable. As part of that process accessibility for people with different abilities is being considered.
