Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
41. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if he will report on the actions his Department will take under the Medium-Term Fiscal and Structural Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10568/26]
View answerThe Medium-Term Structural and Fiscal Plan (MTP), published in December 2025 and submitted to the European Commission last month, sets out Ireland’s fiscal strategy for the period to 2030. An important input to this plan is gross voted expenditure ceilings out to 2030. Under the plan voted spending is projected to increase at an average rate of 6 per cent per annum over the 2026-2030 period, increasing from €117.8 billion in 2026 to €147.3 billion in 2030.
As set out in Section 4.3 of the plan, my department’s actions are focused on ensuring effective budget oversight, strong governance, and value for money alongside the use of evidence and data to support informed decision making.
Managing the delivery of services within budgetary allocations is the responsibility of each Minister and their department, who are required to ensure that appropriate measures are in place to facilitate financial control within budgetary targets. My department engages in regular bilateral discussions with Departments to assess the sustainability of their spending plans.
As part of my department’s role supporting the appropriate use of public funds across government bodies, it establishes the governance frameworks, or rules, setting out the principles and procedures for how money should be spent. Examples of the governance frameworks which are in place include:
• The Code of Practice of the Governance of State Bodies,
• the Public Financial Procedures,
• the Infrastructure Guidelines,
• the Public Procurement Guidelines; and
• Arrangements for oversight of Digital/IT projects and initiatives.
In relation to evidence, my department undertook and published extensive analytical work to assess the totality of public expenditure to inform critical strategic policy statements including the Review of the National Development Plan and Medium-Term Expenditure Framework.
My department is also actively involved in supporting reform across Government as set out in the MTP; for example, through the implementation of the Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan to help drive the efficient delivery of infrastructure across Ireland and the management of EU cohesion funds.
Progress on commitments contained within the MTP will be monitored through an Annual Progress Report to be published by the Department of Finance later this year.
