UPDATE: The bookmakers were right - a blue tie it is. Those who voted pink, however, get partial credit as there are indeed pink dots.

Hard to see but pink dots in the tie #budget14 pic.twitter.com/oIKs1iLPyd

— Páraic Gallagher (@paraicgallagher) October 15, 2013

Original post:

Budget day isn't traditionally a whole lot of fun, but one of the more lighthearted aspects of the day is the anticipation of what colour tie the Minister for Finance will wear when presenting his dreaded annual presentation.

It's one of the more popular 'budget specials' for bookmakers, along with the somewhat more serious topics of what tax rises are predicted. This year, a blue tie has emerged as the favourite possibility, with odds of 5/2 as of last week. This was followed by old favourites purple, pink and red. Dull old white and grey are bottom of the list, although slightly above the possibility of a bow tie at 100/1.

So, what do you think the Minister will settle on? Will it be a bold, colourful offering to reflect a lighter budget than the previous few years? Or can we expect a somber colour choice to reflect the seriousness of the presentation? Vote in our poll above, and make sure to check out newstalk.ie for our Budget live blog this evening.