The stage has now been set for Budget 2021. The White Paper published last night shows a budget deficit this year of €21 billion and an estimated €14.5 billion next year.
That's all before any decision on Budget day to further increase spending. And it does not take into account any tightening of public health restrictions.
If we go back to the mists of time that was January 2020, the Department of Finance’s Medium-Term Fiscal Strategy published in advance of the general election campaign envisioned a 2021 budgetary package of €3.6 billion with an 'unallocated’ (remember the fiscal space?) amount of €1.6 billion to squabble over.