Mick Clifford: For a Government giving away 'billuns', the budget was a strangely subdued affair

The budget had a little bit of something for everyone, but nowhere near enough to be phoning home about

Dazzle is not a word one would associate with Michael McGrath or his confederate Paschal Donohoe, but whatever the duo lacked in the rock ‘n roll department, they more than made up for in the length of their respective giveaway lists.

When your Government is giving away billions, you should be giddy. Back in the days of the illusory Celtic Tiger, government backbenchers were as giddy on budget day as a seven-year-old on Christmas morning.