Vol. 509 No. 6
307 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Finance the measure of GNP used within his Department for official purposes; if his Department is using the CSO agreed exhaustive ESA95 figures; if not, when it will update its figures to incorporate this new standard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21727/99]
For most purposes the Department of Finance uses the latest Central Statistics Office estimates of GNP published in June which are based on an ESA95 exhaustive basis. However, in estimating Ireland's EU budget contribution and in submitting general Government data in accordance with the excessive deficit procedure of the Maastricht Treaty, estimates according to the ESA79 conventions continue to be used in accordance with EU requirements.
From March of next year it is envisaged that submissions in accordance with the Maastricht Treaty excess deficit procedure will be on a ESA95 basis for all EU countries. It is also anticipated that from 2002 onwards ESA95 conventions will be used as a basis for calculating the EU budget contributions.
