Budget Day - Ireland

Ireland

In Ireland, Budget Day is the annual statement to the Dáil by the Minister for Finance, made in the first week of December. It sets out the budgetary targets for the following year and consists of (i) a Financial Statement to the Dáil, (ii) Budgetary Measures (a list of budgetary changes detailing the cost/yield of same), (iii) Budget Statistics and Tables and (iv) various financial resolutions.

The day itself is very similar to Budget Day in the United Kingdom. In the early afternoon, the Minister for Finance will normally hold a photocall in the car park of Leinster House, with the traditional budget briefcase (in recent years, a floppy disk or CD-ROM purportely containing the contents of the Budget speech has often been used instead). At 15:45, the Minister for Finance presents the budget speech in Dáil Éireann. The speech, which lasts approximetly one hour, is normally carried live on Raidió Teilifís Éireann radio and television. The speech contains the main taxation and other fiscal measures to be employed over the next calendar year. The Opposition Front Bench spokesperson on Finance normally replies to the Budget speech first, followed by the spokespersons on finance of other opposition parties. A vote on supply normally takes place before midnight on the night of the budget, with changes to excise duties on alcohol, tobacco, and petrol taking place from midnight. Most other measures are spelt out in greater detail in the Finance Bill which is introduced in the Oireachtas following the budget, eventually becoming the Finance Act.