The Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin is planning to hold a forum on issues like pay, taxation and what services can be afforded.

But Mr Howlin is warning it is not a return to social partnership, but a matter of gauging "consensus" on the country's future.

Speaking ahead of the Cabinet meeting this morning, he said he sees the forum as a way of stress testing ideas.

Mr Howlin said there is now more money in the Exchequer, and he wants to get the best options on how it is spent.

Howlin's statement has met with a lukewarm response from opposition parties, with Fianna Fail's Mattie McGrath saying there's already a place where people can go to talk about these issues: