Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe has defended his fiscal policies and rejected criticism from the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (Ifac) after it described the Government’s projections for the public finances as “not credible”. The fiscal watchdog found the Government had breached post-financial crisis spending rules last year, with budget increases leaving the State running the risk “of repeating the mistakes of the past”. Responding to the criticisms Mr Donohoe said there were always risks for a small, open economy. “I have always acknowledged the potential risk of overreliance on corporation tax, that’s why I increased VAT for the hospitality sector, which will bring in €600 million more. Construction“Yes, I acknowledge the risk and there was too much reliance in the past on one sector – construction.

Source: The Irish Times June 11, 2019 13:52 UTC