Did the government miscalculate revenue from the pension levy (its tax deductable)

[Odyessus]

John Fitzgerald of the ESRI was on Vincent Browne's TV3 programme. The question of expertise came up, and Fitzgerald said the Central Bank actually has some of the best Irish economists on their payroll, but they just haven't been involved in the process. I know that sounds incredible in the context. You'd imagine the best public service resources would have been mobilised at this stage, and that the Central Bank would be willing to lend whatever staff were necessary.

The Department of Finance is a public disgrace. A private company would long ago have fired the people responsible for the wildly inaccurate forecasts it has produced.

I know we are in a rapidly changing situation in the current world financial crisis, but even during the boom years their forecasts on revenue were no better than a back of the beermat calculation would have been i.e. hopelessly wrong.

What is the point for example, in Lenihan asking these people how much a cut in VAT would cost or benefit the exchequer? He may as well toss a coin.

[Schuhart]

Are these the same Central Bank economists who predicted last week that unemployment for 2009 would average 9.4%?

Fair point.

[Pauli]

The Department of Finance is a public disgrace. A private company would long ago have fired the people responsible for the wildly inaccurate forecasts it has produced.

I know we are in a rapidly changing situation in the current world financial crisis, but even during the boom years their forecasts on revenue were no better than a back of the beermat calculation would have been i.e. hopelessly wrong.

What is the point for example, in Lenihan asking these people how much a cut in VAT would cost or benefit the exchequer? He may as well toss a coin.

Dpending on who was doing the calculation on the back of he beermat. A back of a beermat calculation could have been devastatingly accurate, as long as the Department of Finance were holding neither the biro nor the beermat.

[Outlander]

They're trying to make up some of the lost ground now:

RTÉ Business: Top civil servants' bonuses scrapped

The Minister said the bonuses would be abolished 'subject to discussions in relation to the implementation of the decision with the relevant staff association.'

"Subject to Discussion" - whether he's a wether or not?