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MICHAEL NOONAN HAS been given another green light to release the exchequer’s purse strings next budget.
The government’s tax take this year is expected to come in €2 billion above predictions, giving it significantly more wiggle room for extra spending.
Goodbody’s latest fiscal “health check”, out today, included more-positive predictions for the economy as signs of the momentum in its recovery grew.
Chief economist Dermot O’Leary said the combination of the government shifting into spending mode and the benefits of the cheap euro flowing to exporters put Ireland “in a cyclical sweet spot”.
This growth momentum has led to a big outperformance for the public finances in the first quarter of the year,” he said in the update.
Goodbody forecast the end-of-year tax take would be €2 billion up on the figure predicted in last October’s budget, cutting the deficit to 1.9% of GDP – well within EU targets and below the government’s earlier goal of 2.7%.
Exchequer returns from March showed the tax revenues were already €545 million ahead of expectations for the year, mainly due to the government raking in more than it predicted in corporate and income taxes.
But O’Leary added any giveaways in the coming budget would need to be prioritised to keep the economy growing.
Goodbody said the focus should be on tax cuts that acted as an incentive for work, capital spending to stimulate medium-term growth and targeted tax breaks for housing and entrepreneurs.
Debts and taxes
Among the pre-budget kite flying reported so far, the government has variously flagged capping property tax, giving the self-employed equal tax treatment to PAYE workers and delivering incentives to lure emigrants home.
Meanwhile, the latest government finance figures today showed the government’s total debt stood at €203 billion or almost 110% of annual GDP at the end of last year.
That was down from the peak figure of €215 billion in 2013, when debt was worth 123% of the country’s economic output for the year.
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Anyone read the Guardian today, reporting on how penalty points were squashed for the editor of the Irish Independent, they are questioning the integrity of Irish journalists and news outlets for not asking questions.
I expected the journal to at least have something on it.
Thats what has the country Ducked,The journalist are just staying stum to help secure their future employment.Meanwhile the people suffer without a voice.
And the one journalist who wanted to continue asking questions about penalty points got fired by guess who- the same editor who had penalty points quashed, this country is so full of corruption it really is sickening.
There is an inner circle of politicians, the media and certain higher professionals that run this country as they like and the rest of us are mere minions who must do as we are told.
Are we really looking for integrity when we speak about journalists? The least they could’ve done was give the job to someone gook lookling
keep up the good work pat of letting us know that this is not a democracy also another beaut heading to RTE to fill us with pure crap that they throw at us.
I heard Pat Kenny has moved to Newstalk.
No, you’re kidding me, when? Why have I never seen that reported on the journal? Seems very odd that they never saturate their pages with stories about RTE or radio stations owned by multi billionaires.
I’m sure there was an fair and open candidate search for this taxpayer sponsored job
In other news:
My cats breath smells like cat food.
Why is this news?
Hi Angela,
It is filed in the ‘Media’ Section of Business Etc.
Thanks
Sinéad
No pleasing some Sinead :-)
I can see that, admittedly my eyesight isn’t great but I’m not blind. Does ‘The Journal’ source these ‘Media’ stories or do the individuals involved send their own press release in?
Angela
Like a number of reports on Journal and Sport.ie, the original question still remains. Why is this news? Or do you just regurgitate press released from RTE?
Hi Mick, Angela,
This wasn’t press-released by RTÉ but as we have a ‘Media’ section in our Business Etc vertical, it would then make sense to report on major recruitment decisions at Ireland’s public service broadcaster.
Also, there’s loads of other news here if you want to read something else: http://www.thejournal.ie/
Cheers
Sinéad
News Editor
Me thinks she will make RTE alot easier to watch while listening to the BS the TDs are spouting. Yup alot more pleasing on the eye…
A real journalist would not join RTE particularly the political department. might as well work for the Fine Gael press office you will be repeating the same sound bites either way. She looks nice though maybe she will rebel and ask a government minister a real question for a change.
Tough crowd tonight Sinéad.
Why is this tough cheeky bums!
Or some such malarkey.
What defines news? Why’d you click on the article? Go get laid, you’ll find you’re less inclined to nitpic then.
When I grow up I want to be a pol coll
If the Journal’s reporting pisses people off so much, why not go somewhere else for news?
@davidmurphyRTE, too good a political correspondent to loose to Washington. Needed at home.
Erm, David Murphy isn’t a Political Correspondent, he’s Business Editor. If you mean David McCullagh or David Davin-Power, you clearly haven’t read the article!
Touchy, touchy Donal! This weather is getting to me too.
Too many Davids.
Jobs for the boys/girls in RTE, can they ever advertise for some new blood ???
Wouldn’t mind corresponding with her if you know what I mean wink wink
Who?
“Reached out” did he? I thought that was only something the Democrats did to the Republicans
I think they should send Robert Shortt back there, after all he was good at it last time and is the person they chose to send in the interim. Haven’t seen David Murphy report on anything other than Business so hard to judge if he’d be any good.
Politics just got even better!
Good on the eyes as well very important.
Well done David you weren’t overlooked despite wearing shorts whilst reporting outside the dail during our hot summer
Ah sure im sure she will do well as a government media propegandist
RTEs pic makes it look like the Bar lost another one…
have your say