The Finance Minister says he won't rule out hiking the price of cigarettes in next months budget.
Michael Noonan says if he was to raise extra tax in any way he would then have more scope for spending increases or further tax cuts in other areas.
He also says the budget is likely to include new measures to kickstart the construction of family homes.
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Yesterday, as the Central Statistics Office figures showed 2% growth in the last quarter, Mr Noonan warned it would not lead to a "daft spending spree" in the budget, despite it being an election year.
He says an increase in cigarette prices would probably be the only tax he would raise:
