Fine Gael believes that this was a draconian budget that should not have been necessary. Fianna Fáil failed to anticipate the coming crisis and plan accordingly. Now they have made things worse by failing to provide a jobs plan and by putting developers and bankers ahead of our children, pensioners and the sick. We needed a fairer budget that isn’t balanced on the backs of our most vulnerable.
The first step toward that end is for the Government to lead by example. Before cutting health care and education, we should abolish the Senate, cut the number of TDs, reduce the pay of all Dáil members and eliminate the perks that do nothing to help TDs do their jobs and serve their constituents. The economy also will not recover until there is real job creation. That is why we propose investments in water, broadband and clean energy to create 105,000 extra jobs by 2013 – the best and most efficient way to close the budget gap.
The Main Points of Budget 2010
- Social welfare to be reduced by 4.1 per cent
- Child benefit to be reduced by €16 per month, to €150 and €187
- Prescription charge of 50 cent per item under the medical card scheme to apply
- Jobseekers, supplementary welfare allowance will be cut to €100 for new applicants with no dependents aged between 20 and 21, reduced to €150 for 22-24 year olds.
- VAT to be reduced half a per cent to 21 per cent from January, at a cost of €140m
- Savings of over €1bn will be made on public sector pay bill
- Pay cuts range between 5 per cent to 8 per cent for public servants on salaries up to €125,000.
- Homeowners whose mortgage interest relief would have expired in 2010 will receive it up to the end of 2017; interest relief to be abolished entirely by 2017
- Universal social contribution to replace employee PRSI, the health levy and the income levy
- Car scrappage scheme to be introduced until end of 2010, providing VRT relief of up to €1,500 per new car purchased
- Excise duty on alcohol to be cut by 12 cent on pint of beer/cider; 14 cent per half glass of spirits; 60c on bottle of wine. Reduction must be passed on to consumer
- Water charges to be introduced based on consumption above a free allocation, to finance provision of services by local authorities
- Carbon tax equivalent to €15 per tonne to be introduced on petrol, diesel, home heating oil and gas
- €130 million allocated for energy efficiency measures, including national retro-fit programme that could create up to 5,000 jobs next year
- €50m of carbon tax yield will be used to help those at risk of fuel poverty
- Tourism budget to be increased to grow number of visitors to Ireland; investment in visitor attractions to rise to €22m
- Iarnrod Eireann to take part in discounted travel scheme for senior citizens from abroad
- Investment of €70m for flood victims and flood defences
- Government committed to supporting environmentally sustainable agricultural system
- €121 million to be provided for forestry and bio-energy
- VRT exemption for electric vehicles, reliefs for hybrid vehicles extended to 2012
- Three-year corporate and capital tax break for startups to be extended
- Credit review system for banks to be established to allow appeal of bank loan decisions for SMEs, sole traders and farm enterprises
- Financial regulator to examine 6-month moratorium on proceedings arising from arrears to 12 months for all lenders
- Corporation tax rate of 12.5 per cent is ‘here to stay’
- Investment in mental health to be funded from sale of surplus HSE assets; additional €43 million allocated for programme
- Taoiseach to take pay cut of 20 per cent, ministers to reduce pay by 15 per cent
- €136 million to be allocated to provide 26,000 training places for the unemployed; Fás to get €56 million for short term courses
- GDP has fallen 7.5 per cent over the last year; average GDP is expected to decline 1.25 per cent in 2010
- Public services spending to be reduced, mainly through efficiencies rather than cuts
- Government can safeguard generous social welfare system by making savings now
- Rates of payment for child benefit will revert to 2006 levels
- Qualified Child Allowance will rise by €3.80 per week, low income families receiving Family Income Supplement will be compensated
- Measures to reduce social welfare bill by €760 million, save €980m on day to day spending programmes and €960m in savings on investment projects
- Jobseekers, supplementary welfare allowance to be reduced to €150 if measures to aid return to work are refused
- State’s pension bill to grow to 13 per cent of GDP by 2050
- No cut in State pensions
- Minimum pension age for new public servants to be increased from 65 to 66
- New single pension scheme to be introduced for new entrants to public service; pensions to be calculated on career average earnings instead of final salary on retirement
- Permanent pay reduction of 15 per cent for public sector workers in higher pay bands earning more than €200,000; 12 per cent for €165,000 to €200,000; 8 per cent for those on €125,000 to €165,000
- Public sector pay cut of 5 per cent on first €30,000 salary, 7.5 per cent on the folllowing €40,000 of salary and 10 per cent on next €55,000
- No pay increase for judges during lifetime of current Government
- TDs, senators’ pay will be reduced in line with public sector grades
- Ministers to take a 15 per cent pay cut, Taoiseachs pay will be reduced by 20 per cent
- Vouched fuel allowance scheme to be introduced for low income families to help with carbon tax
- Irish domicile levy of €200,000 per year to be introduced for Irish nationals and domiciled individuals whose income exceeds €1m or Irish-located capital is more than €5m
- Stabilising deficit next key milestone in recovery
- The collapse of the property bubble has greatly reduced tax take and increased demand for welfare payments
- Income tax system has become imbalanced
- Single currency has provided protection for Ireland in time of crisis
- Average GDP fell 7.5 per cent in 2009; GDP is expected to fall a further 1.25 per cent in 2010
