Mary Lou McDonald said there are two ‘realities’ in Ireland.

The General Government Balance (GGB) shows a surplus of €22.6 billion in 2024, or 4 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), almost treble the surplus of €7.2 billion recorded in 2023.

Provisional figures were released by the Central Statistics Office on Monday.

The figures do not include measures to be announced in the Budget on Tuesday.