Paul Hosford: Ireland needs long-term budgets that look beyond short-term politics

Simon Harris wants budgets judged as part of a five-year cycle — but true long-termism demands vision beyond elections

Tánaiste Simon Harris: 'The commitments that we have given during the election and in our programme for government must be delivered. But some of them will take a number of budgets to deliver.'

At his party’s think-in earlier this week, Tánaiste Simon Harris made an interesting pitch.

Speaking to TDs and senators in a hotel conference room in Mullingar, Co Westmeath, he made the case for a medium-term view of what has become known as the “budgetary process”.