The Taoiseach today said his Government had a clear strategy for tackling the "unprecedented challenge" posed by the financial crisis.
Attending a Small Firms' Association (SFA) event today in the Mansion, House Dublin, Brian Cowen said this had begun in January, with a five-year framework to restore order to the public finances.
He told his audience the Government’s strategy was based on "decisive action" around four cornerstones: tackling the banking situation to restore credibility, confidence and get credit flowing; attacking the deficit in public finances by increasing revenue and cutting spending over five years; protecting jobs and restoring competitiveness; and investing in the unemployed to facilitate their return to the workplace.
"We have already taken clear and decisive action in this regard. We set out in January a five year framework to restore order to the public finances, which has been accepted and welcomed by the European Commission.
The first step was the savings of €2 billion we identified at the beginning of February. Further decisive action is now being taken based on the end-February Exchequer returns - showing revenues down almost one-quarter on last year," said Mr Cowen, who was attending the SFA National Small Business Awards.
"We are preparing for a supplementary budget at the start of April that will involve a combination of further taxation and expenditure adjustments to address this year’s projected shortfall."
Mr Cowen said the Government's five-year framework deficit this year of 9.5 per cent of GDP, "and we will take the decisions necessary to keep to
this plan. Our responsibility to current and future generations of Irish people demands nothing less". The Taoiseach said the Government was also focusing on short-term action to support economic activity and jobs, "subject to the over-riding constraint of sustainable public finances".
"The recapitalisation scheme includes provision to increase lending capacity to small and medium-sized enterprises by 10 per cent and a Code of
Practice on Business Lending has been introduced. However, given continued concerns from the business community, an independent review of credit availability is under way and will be available next month." He added that a review of the export credit insurance market would be brought to Government shortly.
Mr Cowen said county councils were to set up a "business support unit" to provide a co-ordinated response to businesses from local authorities, the
Tánaiste would meet local authority managers to discuss further means of supporting start-up enterprises, and that she would announce moves to reduce regulatory burdens in the planning area;
"There will be huge opportunities for Ireland - and for small business - in the years ahead if we restructure and invest to make ourselves more competitive, more productive and more energy efficient," the Taoiseach said. "We will make those informed choices and investments, ensuring that a new generation of small businesses can grow and prosper on the Irish and international stage when the upturn comes, as it will."
The SFA yesterday claimed that "damning Exchequer returns released yesterday" showed the private sector could no longer afford to pay for the public sector.
SFA director Patricia Callan said: "The reason that tax revenues are so down is that the private sector economy is being decimated by the recession and the Government has no choice but to implement a minimum of €2bn extra cuts in the public sector, if it is to have any hope of realising its target of 9.5 per cent GDP deficit in 2009.”
Connemara Seafoods was today announced as the overall winner of the SFA National Small Business Award 2009.
