Govt to unveil five-year economic stimulus plan

A long-awaited Government blueprint aimed at kick-starting the ailing economy will be launched today.

Building Ireland’s Smart Economy: A Framework For Sustainable Economic Renewal will be unveiled at Dublin Castle by the Taoiseach and his Cabinet colleagues.

Measures being proposed in the document include sweeping tax breaks for entrepreneurs as well as generous incentives for R&D projects and green energy initiatives.

The framework was worked on by the Government in recent weeks with assistance from senior officials from the IDA and Enterprise Ireland.

The social partners are expected to receive a briefing on the blueprint before its launch.

The Government said the document will set out how it proposes to re-orientate and re-prioritise its business in coming years to weather the global economic storm.

The Taoiseach added: “Many countries are simply trying to ride out the global economic difficulties.

“By putting a framework on the table today, this Government is showing its commitment not only to lead the country through this once-in-a-century downturn, but also to restructure the economy so that we are in pole position when the global recovery occurs. We must plan for the recovery now.”