TAOISEACH BRIAN Cowen and Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan will today brief social partners on the outlines of the Government's plan to stimulate the economy next year, following several hours of talks yesterday amongst Ministers.
The plan includes already-flagged decisions to accelerate the construction of school buildings, and to insulate hundreds of thousands of homes, along with major research and development (RD) tax breaks for Irish and foreign-owned industries.
A decision on a date for the formal publication of the Plan for Economic Renewal, which has been in gestation for some weeks, has not yet been made, and it could still be unveiled before the Christmas break.
Trades unions and employers, along with farmers representatives and other social partners will be given the outline of the plan at today's 11am scheduled meeting in Government Buildings, government sources indicated last night.
The detail of the package was discussed at an afternoon Cabinet meeting in Farmleigh yesterday, which began at 3pm and ended at 7pm after which Ministers stayed on for their traditional Christmas dinner.
The Government's economic plan preparations have caused considerable confusion, with different signals being given about whether it would be published this week or next month. Venture capital funds and institutional investors will be offered incentives to back small Irish-owned firms, in a move designed to ease the current credit crisis. Actions to accelerate ties between such companies and leading multinationals will be accelerated.
The plan does not, so far, include proposals to sell off State assets, or to take immediate action against civil and public service pensions, though longer-term changes will be hinted at in today's meeting with the social partners.
In tandem with the renewal plan, the Government has also ordered an expert group, led by economist Colm McCarthy, to identify major cuts in public spending for next year. This body's first report is due by the end of January, or earlier.
The focus on extra RD tax breaks has been adopted by the Government in the face of European Union rule changes which will make it more difficult, or impossible to give grant aid to foreign companies setting up in the midwest and southwest.
Informed sources believe the focus on RD in the plan marks a recognition by the Government that it must continue to move inward investment policy away from employment grants in light of these new restrictions.
The Government's basic aim is to replicate the success of the International Financial Services Centre in Dublin in the RD arena, creating potential to establish Ireland as a global centre for RD.