The Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, should stick to the Partnership 2000 commitments on spending and taxation in his December 3rd Budget and use any margin for manoeuvre to prepare for the long term, the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland (CCI) has said.

CCI President Mr Tom Kehoe warned in a pre-Budget statement that the mood in the country was verging on the reckless as a result of good news on growth, jobs and inflation. But abandoning spending restraint and encouraging inflation could set back Ireland's economic progress by several years, he said.

According to the CCI, priority should be given to education and training expenditure, as Ireland's competitive advantage in the future will depend on investment in human skills, the CCI said. Training support for those at work should represent at least 10 per cent of the training and employment budget by 2000, it said.