THE GOVERNMENT'S four-year recovery plan for the economy will be published on Tuesday, senior departmental officials have confirmed.
The Cabinet will meet tomorrow to sign off on the 160-page document, which charts how the State will reduce its outgoings by €15 billion between now and the end of 2014. It follows a marathon eight-hour meeting of Ministers on Thursday at which agreement was reached on the bulk of the final plan.
Minor details have yet be finalised, said a Government official yesterday who is familiar with the project.
The Department of Finance has been pressing for the document to be published on Monday, if possible. However, it accepted that it was now more likely to be Tuesday.
There is a requirement for the paper to be laid before the Oireachtas.
Sources in Government, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, agreed that the document has been brought forward so that it can be identified as a scheme that originated from the Government, and not from the international organisations - the International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Central Bank and European Commission - which have sent missions to Ireland to broker a multi-billion euro rescue package with the Government.
"It's stark. It's IMF-like but it's totally the work of the Government," said one official.
Last night, one source who is familiar with the process said the European Commission and the fund may review the plan over the course of the weekend, but would have no role or involvement in it.
"The IMF will accept the fouryear plan and will go with it," said the official. "The IMF usually go into a country and draw up a three- or four-year plan. Here they have been handed one. If the Government can push through a €6 billion budget, the IMF will be delighted with it."
The official also said that private back-channel discussions have taken place for many months between the fund and the commission.
"All of those bodies are well aware of the plan and the budgetary proposals, and approve of the idea," the source added.
Another source said European commissioner for economic and monetary affairs Olli Rehn was briefed in detail on the plan during his recent visit to Dublin.
The document has gone through approximately eight draft stages and contains specific details. It provides information on the budgets for each section of various Government departments, what cuts will be implemented, yearly targets for reductions and how these will be achieved.
There is also a chapter outlining the Coalition's strategy for growth over the next four years, and also outlining the initiatives. Specific tax measures are not mentioned in the document - they will be revealed on budget day, December 7th - but the increased revenue forecasts from taxes are included.
The document also reaffirms the Government commitment to retaining the 12.5 per cent corporation tax rate, a feature of the Irish tax structure which will come under threat as part of the agreement.
Some confusion emerged during the week about the publication date, with contradictory statements from Ministers.
But yesterday two senior Ministers, Minister for Health Mary Harney and Minister for Community Affairs Pat Carey, confirmed publication early next week.
Ms Harney said the plan was "almost finalised", while Mr Carey said on radio that it would be published early in the week.
