Minister Chambers Publishes Mid-Year Expenditure Report 2026

The Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, Jack Chambers T.D, today published the Mid-Year Expenditure Report 2026, which provides an assessment of public expenditure trends and outlines the expenditure context and approach, ahead of Budget 2027.

The Mid-Year Expenditure Report is a key document in the whole of year budget process – examining key policy priorities, expenditure trends and associated risks and setting out policy considerations to support sustainable public finances and effective public service delivery. The report highlights the choices and trade-offs involved in balancing competing demands for resources within available fiscal parameters.

The Mid-Year Expenditure Report builds on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework published in 2025 as a planning exercise to guide future budgetary decisions. The report adds to the evidence base by providing analysis of key policy areas including capital investment, social protection, health and public service pay and staffing.

This analysis outlines the scale of investment that has been provided for in recent years alongside the policy outcomes and impacts associated with this expenditure growth. Increased investment since 2019 has facilitated growth in the public service workforce, sustained and enhanced adequacy in sectors such as social protection and health and expanded eligibility and reduced the cost of accessing public services.

At the same time, the report draws lessons for future policy design. This includes:

• The importance of capital investment to support continued economic growth and meet the needs of a growing population;
• The need for choices and trade-offs within and across key policy areas and for targeted measures that deliver the greatest impact while supporting sustainable expenditure growth;
• The effective management of the size and composition of the public service workforce to strengthen capacity and improve outcomes for citizens in a sustainable manner; and
• The importance of enhancing efficiency and value for money, ensuring public expenditure remains sustainable while continuing to support the delivery of high-quality public services.

Speaking on publication of the report, Minister Chambers said:

“The Mid-Year Expenditure Report is an important milestone in the budgetary cycle. It sets out the expenditure position ahead of Budget 2027 and provides an assessment of the choices and trade-offs facing Government. As we prepare for the next Budget, we must ensure that public expenditure continues to support a growing population while remaining sustainable over the longer term.”

“Public investment has generally delivered good value for money, supporting economic growth, improving public services and enhancing long-term productive capacity. However, as the scale of investment increases, maintaining strong value for money becomes more challenging. As a Government, we will need to find efficiencies to continue investing in priority services and infrastructure while managing spending growth responsibly. These are all important considerations as we approach Budget 2027.

“Additional investment must be targeted at policies and programmes with higher marginal returns while managing capacity constraints. We must strengthen governance and reform delivery processes to maximise the marginal gains from additional investment and to ensure that each additional euro invested generates beneficial outcomes for people, society and the economy.”

The report will inform preparations for Budget 2027.

The Mid-Year Expenditure Report is available on the Department's website.

Ends

Notes to Editors

• The Mid-Year Expenditure Report forms part of the annual budgetary process and is published following the Summer Economic Statement.
• The report provides analysis of expenditure over the period 2019-2025, expenditure drivers and the medium-term outlook for public spending.
• The report is intended to support the Estimates process and Budget preparations by identifying expenditure trends, pressures and policy challenges.
• Budget 2027 will be on 6 October 2026.