A speech by the Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, Mr.Robert Watt, as part of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce SMART series on Thursday May 16th, 2013.

The latest Gini coefficients for Ireland are .311 in 2011 and .316 in 2010

Failure to implement EU Directives correctly and in time leads to significant costs. The most recent illustration of this is the Waterford Crystal pension’s case. We need to put a process in place to ensure that the transposition of Directives is done competently and in time.

Dublin Bus : Funding and Financial Performance

Statement by EC, ECB and IMF on the Tenth Review Mission to Ireland - May, 2013

This note assesses recent evidence on the incentive to work. It discusses the measures by which economists gauge work incentives and outlines the results of various empirical studies. Despite a relatively generous welfare net and the costs associated with working, most of the evidence suggests that the majority of unemployed people would be better off in a job.

This note sets out the key facts in relation to the current Irish fiscal position as at May 2013.

A short presentation on migration, employment and labour market participation delivered by Cormac O’Sullivan at the first annual NERI Labour Market Conference on May 1st 2013

Department of Finance Monthly Economic Bulletin March 2013

Economic Forecast for Ireland Spring 2013

This report contains a detailed statistical and economic analysis of the tax systems of the Member States of the European Union, plus Iceland and Norway. The report also contains indicators of the average effective tax rate falling on consumption, labour and capital, as well as data on environmental and property taxation and on the top rates for the personal and corporate income tax. Country chapters give an overview of the tax system in each of the 29 countries covered, the revenue trends and the main recent policy changes. Detailed tables allow comparison between the individual countries and European averages. Data cover the 1995-2011 period and are presented both as a percentage of GDP and as a percentage of total taxation

Stability Programme Update - April 2013

Domestic Water Charges in Europe

Presentation by Mr John Martin, Director for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, OECD at Launch of OECD Review of the Irish Pension System, 22 April, 2013.

EU Commission 9th review of Irish Programme April 2013

Review of the Irish Pension System April 2013

Government Finance Statistics Annual Results 2009-2012 (April 2013) (PDF 141KB) Government Finance Statistics Quarterly Results 2009-2012 (April 2013) (PDF 104KB)

Eurostat publishes Maastricht returns which show that Ireland's General Government Deficit in 20012 was 7.6 % of GDP. The forecast for 2013 is 7.4 % of GDP.

IMF Fiscal Monitor & Database April, 2013

Revised Estimates for Public Services 2013

The Social Inclusion Monitor reports progress towards the national social target for poverty reduction. It is primarily based on the findings of the Survey on Income and Living Conditions 2011, undertaken by the Central Statistics Office. The focus of the Monitor is on social and economic outcomes as they relate to poverty and social exclusion

This document presents a social impact assessment of the main welfare and direct tax components of Budget 2013. In 2011, all social transfers reduced the at-risk-of-poverty rate from 51 per cent to 16 per cent

The report assesses the Department of Finance's official macroeconomic and budgetary projections in the context of Budget 2013 and the forthcoming Stability Programme Update. The report also considers the appropriateness of the fiscal stance over the period to 2015, and looks at Ireland's compliance with the fiscal rules legislated for under the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

IMF 9th Review of Ireland’s Programme March 2013

The author describes how EMU design failures contributed to the European financial crisis, and proposes a redesign of the EMU that includes fiscal and banking unions.

Regional GDP statistics adjusted for purchasing power parity. While Southern and Easter Ireland is among the leading 25 regions, the Border, Midland and Western region is below average. If GNP were used for Ireland instead of GDP, Ireland would fall from 3rd place in the country rankings to 11th.

A report by the President of the European Council setting out a vision for reform of the EMU.

The authors discuss the options for a banking union in Europe, highlighting the need for common regulation, a supranational resolution authority, centralised deposit insurance and some form of implicit fiscal backing

This is the review of the Troika Programme published 28 March, 2013

The gap between current Government spending and revenue as measured by the General Government Deficit in 2012 was over €13 billion (8.2 % of GDP). We are committed to reducing this deficit under the EU Excessive Deficit Procedure to below 3 % by 2015. The pay and pensions bill accounts for 35 % of Government spending. If public sector pay and pensions were to be fully protected, the burden of adjustment would have to fall on non-pay current spending, capital spending or increases in taxation or some combination of these. While these items will have to bear a share of the necessary adjustment, putting the total burden of adjustment on these items would be either more economically damaging or socially regressive than putting some of the burden on pay and pensions. The proposed reductions in incomes over €65,000 are clearly progressive. However it is difficult to assess the impact of the reductions in overtime, premium pay and other allowances as the incidence of these will vary considerably in individual cases.

Report of a sub-committee on penal reform recommending a ‘de-incarceration’ strategy that aims to reduce the prison population by one third over a ten year period

An analysis of the Irish minimum wage. Although our minimum wage is high by European standards, we also have high prices and high median wages.

IMF Completes Ninth Review Under the Extended Fund Facility with Ireland and Approves €0.97 Billion Disbursement.

Presentation by Mario Draghi, President of the ECB, at the Euro Summit, Brussels,14 March 2013

This short note from the Institute of International Finance compares and contrasts the recent economic fortunes of Ireland and Greece. Ireland’s relative success comes not just from its larger export sector and improved competitiveness, but also a gentler pace of fiscal consolidation and lower multiplier.

The Irish government has published the draft heads of a climate bill. Because we won’t know the essence of what is proposed until we see the national and sectoral roadmaps that will follow, it is not possible to draw definitive conclusions as to the sense and effectiveness of what is proposed.

Attached is an article from the Irish Times of 19 March 2013 proposing that the means test for third level student grants should take account of capital assets.

This report looks into the background to property taxation in Ireland and assesses why the introduction of such a tax is necessary at present. This report also describes how the Local Property Tax is calculated, how it is paid and possible benefits or drawbacks that may arise as a result.

Clinical data on in-patient and out-patient services

Information on Medical Card coverage, other health service schemes and food safety.

Includes break-down of non-capital and capital expenditure on health

A break-down of employment in the health service by role and location.

Data on life expectancy, births, marriages and deaths, including age-standardised mortality rates

Contains a range of information on the health status of the Irish population, including self-reported health status and clinical data.

Demographic data for Ireland, including projected population and projected dependency ratios.

This paper surveys the benefit system in Ireland. It provides detail on social payments as a percentage of GDP, GNP and overall government expenditure and it compares the benefit system in Ireland to that of the UK.

At age 50 Irish men and women can expect to live more than 20 more years in good health

Analysis of Exchequer Pay and Pensions Bill 2007-2012

Ireland's Report Card March, 2013

Cumulative Profiles of Expected Exchequer Expenditure and Revenue 2013