A €10.5bn election giveaway spending spree will see one-off payments before Christmas, cuts to taxes and additional spending, which are all targeted at putting money back in people’s pockets.
Taoiseach Simon Harris said the Government has used a massive surplus to “help people make ends meet”, but is also setting aside funds to make sure this generation of children “never experiences the austerity that many of us lived through”.
He insisted the budget was a “balanced approach,” that is “trying to respond to the needs that people have spoken to me about over the last number of months” and pushed back on concerns from the State’s spending watchdog that the raft of bonus payments could overheat the economy.
The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (Ifac) warned that Budget 2025 “repeats Ireland’s past mistakes of pumping billions into the economy” when it is at full employment. Ifac said:
Ireland needs a more serious vision that delivers on the economy’s needs without repeating the boom-to-bust pattern of its past.
As speculation mounts around a November election, which would align with double social protection and child benefit payments for potential voters, Mr Harris was pressed on the possibility of an early poll.
“I am very eager that the Government finishes its work,” he told RTÉ but stopped short of confirming the Coalition would remain in place until the spring, instead stating the election will take place in “due course”.
Finance Minister Jack Chambers has confirmed he will bring the Finance Bill to Government next Tuesday and it will take “a number of weeks” to progress through the Oireachtas.
However, there is significant speculation that this process, which is required to enact the raft of financial measures announced, could be expedited allowing for an election in November or even the end of October.
The €2.2bn cost-of-living package announced as part of this Government’s final budget includes two €125 electricity credits, one of which is due to be paid to households before the end of the year.
There were also financial supports for higher education, a €99m boost for the Port of Cork’s expansion plans and the coalition has placed a focus on women’s health through increased access to IVF and free hormone replacement therapy.
There will be two double child benefit payments, one in November and another in December; while pensioners, jobseekers and people on other key social welfare supports will also receive a double payments.
A number of lump sum payments, including €100 for qualified child payment, a €200 living alone bonus, a €300 fuel allowance payment and €400 lump sum for the carers support grant will also be rolled out.
A ‘baby boost’ for newborns is also included in the package, with a one off payment of €420 that will kick in from January.
However, the Government was already coming under pressure to ensure that children born in December receive the double child benefit payment. Child benefit is generally payable from the first day of the month after the child is born, meaning that parents of children born in December will miss out on both that double payment and the €420 “baby boost” which comes into effect from January 1.
A government source said the issue was flagged “almost immediately after the budget speeches”, with backbench TDs already flagging the issue with ministers, hoping for a U-turn.
Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe said the budget, which will also include a €12 across-the-board increase to social welfare payments and a cut in the USC rate from 4% to 3%, would “set out a positive path for the future while striving to meet the needs of today”.
However, the opposition hit out at a lack of long-term vision.
Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty said: “Despite the budget being announced today, we still feel poor as a country in so many ways: in housing; in health; in disabilities; in mental health. The Government’s job is not just to spend money; it also needs to get results.”
Business leaders, disability campaigners and trade unions also accused the Coalition of wasting a unique opportunity to make a real and lasting difference.
While welcoming a €1,000 tax credit for renters, Threshold said longer term thinking and measures to increase access to affordable housing — whether to rent or buy — are what are truly needed to address the affordability crisis in our housing system.
