Fianna Fáil ‘inappropriate’ to offer conditional budget support

Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe has criticised Fianna Fáil for attempting to dictate decisions in the forthcoming budget. Mr Donohoe was reacting to comments made by Fianna Fáil spokesman on social protection Willie O'Dea who insisted on a €5 increase in the old-age pension.

The Minister said it was inappropriate for Fianna Fáil to try to influence the budget. Mr Donohoe said: “Just as we are not in a position to deliver the entire programme for government in a single government, we are not going to be in a position to deliver the entire agreement that we have with Fianna Fáil in a single budget.

“If we were to look to do either, this would create the kind of politics that has created the cost and difficulty that we want to put behind us as a country and we are not going to go down that path. Similarly, what we are very clear on is that we have an agreement with Fianna Fáil that has particular measures in it. It is not appropriate that their support for this budget becomes conditional on items that are not included in the supply and confidence agreement.”

Fianna Fáil had insisted that its support for the Fine Gael-led minority Government was reliant on a number of measures. Mr O’Dea called for the pension increase in an interview at the weekend.

Mr Donohoe said he could not guarantee a rise in the payment, insisting he would only agree to affordable measures. However, he insisted the supply and confidence arrangement between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael would be honoured.

The Minister said the budget this year would be aimed at protecting Ireland from the shock of Brexit and any potential implications from the US election.

“We are seeing a higher level of risk now than many of us would have hoped we would be facing and we need to protect our country, protect our economy, protect everyone who is living in it and use that growth and the maintenance of economic growth to deal with these risks and deliver the kind of benefits and changes that we want to see happening in our country.

“We are seeing a very, very different international environment that creates a level of risk and a level of challenge for Ireland that is very different to what we would have anticipated a number of years ago.

“This Government will put in place a series of budgets that will protect our country and look to respond back to those challenges and that is what myself, Fine Gael and all our Independent colleagues are committed to doing.”

Mr Donohoe said he was in negotiations with his Cabinet colleagues about the funding that is available to them for 2017. The Government will have about €600 million for new spending, plus €250 million for capital spending in the Budget.

The Oireachtas is committed to a new system of formulating the budget, with all-party discussions and attempts to reach consensus about spending priorities at a new Oireachtas budget committee.

Hearings are due to begin on September 5th.