The government is being cautioned against promising too much as the economic recovery continues.

It comes in the wake of figures yesterday showing the tax take for 2014 was €1.2bn higher than expected.

The total tax take of €41.3bn was almost 4% ahead of target, with nearly all taxes better than expected.

Capital Gains Tax outperformed estimates by more than 40%, income tax was 8.9% above estimates and VAT was up 7.9%.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has also pledged to cut income tax, create more jobs and take steps that would see fewer people having to pay the Universal Social Charge (USC).

Mr Kenny said yesterday that one in four workers will not be paying the USC at all by next year, and he also promised an extra 40,000 jobs will come on stream by the end of the year.

But chief economist at Goodbody Stockbrokers, Dermot O'Leary, told Breakfast here on Newstalk that an expected election in 2016 must not be allowed to sway economic policies.