THE ECONOMIC focus must now be on reducing expenditure rather than on increasing total taxation, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan said.

He said he would receive the conclusions of the special group on public service numbers and expenditure programmes next week. No area of expenditure had been excluded.

“In carrying out its work the group has looked critically at the numbers of public servants employed across all areas of the public service and has assessed the scope for transferring staff to priority areas and for reducing numbers overall as well as to identify surplus staff.’’

He expected it would make recommendations for further rationalisation of State agencies beyond the measures announced in the budget. “As I have said elsewhere, this report pulls no punches and leaves nowhere to hide for an Opposition that is more interested in playing politics with our current difficulties than coming up with any worthwhile solutions.’’

Mr Lenihan accused the Opposition of having “a lust for power’’, so long denied it by the electorate, and was engaging in shameless short-term populism without any regard for the common good.

Rounding on the Opposition, Minister for the Environment John Gormley said to its shame it had failed to engage realistically in the debate on the future of the economy.

“They have used a cloak of unsubstantiated claims and criticisms to hide a paucity of ideas for dealing with the current crisis. They are the living, breathing, walking examples of empty vessels making the most noise.’’

He said the Opposition had shied away from telling people that extremely difficult and sometimes unpalatable decisions had to be taken in responding to the economic crisis. “They are not being honest with the public; they do not tell them that we cannot maintain spending at its current levels, and we also have to find new revenue streams.”