I thank Deputy O'Sullivan for the question. SMEs are the lifeblood of the Irish economy and they account for 99.8% of all businesses in Ireland, along with 69.2% of all employment in the business economy. Recognising the importance of SMEs to Ireland, my Department has regularly carried out SME credit demand surveys since 2011. These surveys are critical tools to understand how the sector is performing and how needs for credit are being met. The survey series provides an overview of the economic context and Governm…

I thank Deputy O'Sullivan. Overall the credit demand survey for 2023 paints a complex picture. It is multifaceted because, of course, SMEs operate in a range of sectors. Overall the results of the survey once again underline the resilience in the face of economic challenges. There is a steady demand for credit. It also highlights evolving investment patterns, one of which Deputy O'Sullivan correctly highlighted with regard to investment in climate and energy efficiency measures. We continue to have work to do to hi…

The Deputy's question is about interest rates facing SMEs. The changes in the interest rates being paid by SMEs were directly linked to the monetary policy environment, the ten successive interest rate increases we had from the ECB which worked their way through the system, in particular in respect of floating rate charges, variable rate loan products and then when it came to the re-pricing of fixed interest rate products by the commercial banks but also by the non-banks. I do not have further information on the ea…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 69 and 237 together. The economic performance across the EU and Ireland was somewhat subdued last year amid weak global trade and GDP growth. In 2023, GDP grew by a modest 0.4% in the euro area and EU, while Irish GDP recorded a contraction of 3.2%. GDP growth in the euro area and Ireland is projected to pick up this year, though remaining below historical growth rates. The European Commission is projecting euro area and Irish GDP growth of 0.8% and 1.2%, respectively, for this year…

We monitor inflation at the headline level but also the components of inflation quite closely, as would be expected. Every time a publication is issued by the Central Statistics Office and Eurostat, it is examined by officials in my Department, who report to me, give me a summary of them and their interpretation of the underlying trends. Of course, there is a difference between the harmonised rate, which reflects the agreed methodology across the European Union, and the consumer price index. The main difference is …

The truth is that GDP is measured in Ireland in exactly the same way as in every other European country, but because we have a very large multinational sector, we believe it is important to have other measures of the economy as well. This is why we have MDD and GNI* and we publish all this information regularly. The agreed international measure of economic performance, though, whether that be growth or contraction, is GDP. Those numbers, therefore, are published for Ireland alongside those of all the other member s…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 70, 90 and 238 together. Inflation reached multidecade highs in 2022, averaging 8.1%, with a peak of 9.6% in June 2022, as measured using the harmonised method of the harmonised index of consumer prices, HICP. While the initial driver of this inflationary pressure was a surge in global energy prices, it subsequently became increasingly broad-based as price pressures spread throughout the economy. Since then, enormous progress has been made in reducing inflation, with headline HICP i…

The dynamics of energy prices have been key in driving the headline inflation rate over recent years. The initial driver of inflation was a surge in energy prices that followed the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This substantially disrupted the supply of energy, in particular of natural gas, of which Russia was a large exporter to Europe. Wholesale gas prices peaked at £4 per therm in September 2022 having averaged £0.50 per therm prior to the pandemic. The increase in wholesale gas prices subsequently translated int…

I thank the Deputies. We are at a point in the budgetary cycle where we have published the stability programme update. We will have the national economic dialogue next month and then we will have the summer economic statement and will consider all of the issues that the Deputies have raised in deciding on the budgetary parameters. Then, more particularly when deciding on the individual measures, we need to strike a balance between recognising that the cost of living remains high. Even though headline inflation is f…

In short, the answer is "Yes, Deputy". The access to cash legislation is at a very advanced stage of preparation. We need to consult the European Central Bank because some of the matters in the Bill are relevant to the functions of the ECB but I expect we will be sending a copy of the Bill to it in the next number of weeks. In essence the Bill will provide for the registration and regulation of ATMs including ATM deployers. This will protect access to cash. It will also protect cash lodgment services for businesses…

I thank the Deputies opposite for their constructive engagement on the Bill so far, particularly on Committee Stage when we had a good and lengthy discussion on the different sections, the purpose of setting up these two new funds and the different perspectives on how the funds might be managed. I thank the Members for their co-operation in facilitating the swift progression of this legislation. Section 7 is an important section of the Bill and it is appropriate that we discussed it at length on Committee Stage. As…

I thank Deputy Doherty for his contribution. We will discuss the issue of housing in more detail in the next group of amendments. It is fair to point out the role of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, which is focused on investment in the Irish economy across the four key investment themes of climate, housing and enabling investments, scaling indigenous businesses, and food and agriculture. Earlier this week, we had further evidence of the good work being done by ISIF in terms of the announcement it made about …

That is not true.

I thank Deputy Doherty for tabling these amendments and all the other Deputies for their contributions. We had a good discussion of this issue on Committee Stage. We do not agree entirely, that is for sure, but I set out then and am happy to set out now the reasons we are adopting the approach we are. I reiterate at the outset that housing will benefit from the establishment of the infrastructure, climate and nature fund. This fund will be spent on infrastructure over time. We have to remind ourselves that the prin…

I am well able to acknowledge the scale of the challenge and Deputy Gould should have the good grace to acknowledge where progress is being made. Progress is being made not just in Cork but all over the country. I will let the Deputy speak to Niall Ó Donnabháin, Brian Geaney or whoever in Cork City Council. They will take him through the numbers. The council is making progress, even on a like-for-like basis. I knew all about social housing. I was delighted to grow up in a social house. It was a great opportunity an…

Of course we need to do more, but if the Deputy looks at-----

HAP is State-supported housing. We can dance on a pinhead about what it is. Of course it is not council housing, but it is State-supported housing in that the State is paying. It is not the ideal. We want people to be in secure affordable homes with long-term secure tenure. That is the State's objective and why we have gone back to building at real scale. A total of 800 social housing units in one year in Cork city is serious output. We are not putting a cap on the ambition of that local authority or that of others…

I thank Deputies on all sides of the House for their co-operation in the consideration of this Bill on Second Stage, in the really good engagement we had on Committee Stage and again today on Report Stage. To those who say they are in favour in principle of a sovereign wealth fund but are against the specific one brought forward by the Government after a huge amount of work, I say, "Please table your alternative".

No alternative sovereign wealth fund has actually been tabled by the Opposition party in question.

The Bill that the Government has brought forward has been widely commended by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, the Central Bank of Ireland, the European Commission, the OECD and a list of ratings agencies and other independent experts, both domestic and international. I agree with Deputy Doherty about the risk of using windfall corporate tax receipts inappropriately. We will not do that. It is appropriate to spend some of those receipts now. We are providing for that by enhancing the national development plan by …