THE GOVERNMENT is set to publish revised estimates for economic growth next Monday – making it clear whether it expects to need a mini-Budget later in the year.
The Department of Finance will publish the latest edition of the Stability Programme Update next week, in which it will reappraise its earlier projections for how much the Irish economy might grow by this year.
The 2012 Budget announced four months ago was based on projections that the economy would grow by 1.3 per cent this year – a figure which has since been undercut by estimates from the European Commission and IMF, who expect growth of 0.5 per cent.
The OECD, meanwhile, has anticipated growth of 1.0 per cent, while the ESRI believes the economy will grow by 0.9 per cent.
The possibility of further Budget measures was somewhat alleviated by figures this week from Eurostat, which noted that Ireland’s budget deficit for 2011 if the costs of the banking bailout were removed – was 9.4 per cent of GDP, well ahead of the 10.6 per cent target set by the bailout.
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