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The Public Sector is made up of all bodies controlled by the Government. It includes Central Government (the Taoiseach, his department and all other government departments), Local Government (such as Sligo County Council), non-commercial state agencies (such as Teagasc) and commercial companies in government control (such as the ESB).

Thus, the Public Sector spans several institutional sectors, as the diagram illustrates.

Public Sector Bodies, as we can see, may be in the Government sector, may be Public Non-Financial Corporations (such as the ESB) or may be Public Financial Corporations (for example the Central Bank). It is important which of these three groups a body belongs to. The European Union sets limits on Government debt (how much it owes) and deficit (how much over-budget it can go in a year) as part of the Stability and Growth Pact. If an entity is either a Public Financial or Public Non-Financial Corporation, they are not considered part of the General Government sector, and as a result, their debt and deficit is not counted towards this limit.

All Public Sector bodies, and their classifications, are described in the Register of Public Sector Bodies.

Read next: Households

A-Z of National Accounts

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