Any windfall gains for the exchequer should be used to stimulate the economy rather than to repay borrowings, as proposed in this week’s draft programme for government, Sinn Féin’s finance spokesman Pearse Doherty has said. We need to use the resources that available from the transfers from Nama.”The National Asset Management Agency is due to transfer the first €2 billion of an expected €4 billion surplus to the exchequer later this year. Mr Doherty said this money should be “used to build the houses that we need” to tackle the housing crisis. “If you look at where we are in the next five years we have no big rollovers of debt, we’re in a very good position. Mr Doherty also said the State’s majority ownership of AIB could be “very, very useful at this point in time if used and directed properly”.

Source: The Irish Times June 17, 2020 16:52 UTC