The Fiscal Advisory Council has often been compared to a watchdog. Michael Noonan used to say when political colleagues complained about its spicier reports that you buy a dog to bark. When the dog barks, it gives you some kind of information. You can choose to listen to the kind of bark it makes. You can choose to ignore it. You can do something on the basis of the dog’s bark, or not. When it comes to the various authorities the State has created post-financial crisis, you want watchdogs, not lap dogs. Much of the time, the Fiscal Council exists…

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