Emergency Budget debate could cut Dáil holidays short

The Government may return early from Easter holidays to debate its emergency Budget, due on April 7.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen today revealed the hard-hitting financial measures will be discussed for three days before TDs break for this year’s 19-day recess.

The Cabinet held an early-morning meeting to be briefed by officials on possible options to plug an estimated €4.5bn hole in the public finances.

However, Opposition leaders said in the Dáil they want more information on the Exchequer coffers before they accept the Government’s offer to come forward with proposals to be considered for the Budget.

Mr Cowen said the Finance Minister Brian Lenihan may brief the Opposition in a pre-Budget Dáil debate but that many issues were still confidential.

But Labour leader Eamon Gilmore said: “We must know that information because we can’t fly blind here.

“If you want the Opposition to meaningfully engage you are going to have to make available to us the information.

“It is either a genuine exercise or a political smokescreen.”

Mr Cowen suggested that the Dáil could resume a week early from its Easter recess on April 22 to continue the debate.

Meanwhile, the Government has now revised earlier forecasts and now expects the economy to shrink by up to 6.5% in 2009 – higher than the Central Bank’s estimate of 6%.

Mr Cowen said: “It was said at Budget time in October it would be in the region of 2%. We said in January it would be about 4%.

“The indications are now it could well be 6-6.5%. So that shows you the fragility of the economy,” he said.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said he wanted to be briefed on the taxation proposals and spending cuts under consideration by the Government.

The decision to sanction new spending cuts and tax hikes was made at Cabinet last week after disastrous Exchequer Returns for February.