As usual there won't be any surprises on the headline issues. Top rate of tax won't kick in now until 40k. Another 600 in energy bill credits, double payment in child benefit in November and free school books for primary school kids.
The 40k is reasonable to be fair think the jump is too severe and steep from 21 to 40%. To think they take 40% of your pay cheque is ridiculous when you consider the value you are getting for it. Still it's what 19% of 2.5k back in our pocket, worth a tenner a week, 600 in credits another 10er a week and about a 5er a week for those with kids. I'll prob be up 100 euro a month after the budget will soften the blow of the fuel crisis and might allow me upgrade the lidl bread back to Brennan's. Hoping they up the bonus voucher from 500 to 1k that would be sound.
The change in childcare subsidies is massive, we're maybe looking at getting over 300 a month back on that. It's probably a bit worrying that there's such a giveaway budget in inflationary times but cost of living increases is killing people.
They expect a general election in the coming year so this is aimed aimed at gaining lost ground on SF. From what I have seen nothing that is game changer, just ‘quick fixes’.
It feels like an old school FF budget when all they had to do was keep throwing money at people and everything was fine, until that whole house of cards came crashing down of course!
The tax cut wipes out the increase in my mortgage. The energy credits will probably mean cheaper bills for me this winter than I had last winter,or at least not much difference. The double child benefit payment plus the increase will be an extra 450 euro in November. I got rid of my car a few years back,plus we don't do many miles in her car anyway, so that 450 basically covers the increase in petrol.
I really don't see how much more they could do in one budget to be honest. There is a lot there to ease the pain in a lot of different areas, while still keeping a budget surplus for next year and keeping conscious of measures which do the least to fuel inflation. We are better than so many more western countries (see our nearest neighbours for example in how to fcuk yourself financially in so many ways).
I was about to say that no vat on newspapers is a weird one. It's actually not weird, it's scandalous.
Its the equivalent of a golfer laying up after going into the water for the 3rd time on a shot he should never have taken on in the first place. Yes,it's probably the right decision and yes he's better than the golfer who turned up drunk and with the prostitute he was with the night before as his caddy, but it's still too little too late because of his shit decisions beforehand.
There are plenty things the government has done wrong, particularly on housing but I just don't see the global cost of living crisis and energy crisis as their fault and I think the measures they have taken given the position we are in are actually more than I expected. I appreciate that is not the modern way to go. I don't think anyone else would have done any better in this budget, in fact there was a lot of scope for doing much worse. I know that is not popular either. They'll get kicked no matter what they do, I won't add my foot to the pile when I think they are getting something right.
I have to say based on what I have seen so far I have to agree, slightly more targetting around Social Welfare payments rather than doubling Childrens Benefit and and offering the credit to those not in need would have been an area I'd have improved on. Giving millionaires an axtra 700 quid isnt going tomake a difference where as if it was allocated towards the low income, disability, carers and pensioners I'd be even happier. The work being done on Childcare is fantastic also, starting from a very low ebb but we are making progress here far quicker than I anticipated. Speaking of the budget they are thicking the right boxes, too little too late I anticipate for most when the elections come around mind.
literally just turned on the radio and heard paschal saying "slurry storage facilities." that made me smile.
They've had more than enough praise for the political equivalent of not pissing on the toilet seat just because UK and US governments were shitting in the bed. There's nothing particularly inspiring in this budget, its basic competence. And it's only competence they're willing to apply because the majority of people are now struggling with a cost of living crisis and it would be electoral carnage for them if they don't step up. People were struggling with the cost of living long before the war in Ukraine,and long before covid but they were ideologically opposed to helping those people in a competent way during their crisis. Covid and the Ukraine war have shown that the "magic money tree" can always get another shake when they decide something is actually a crisis, and that the phrase magic money tree is just a way of pretending its irresponsible to help people. And even then their only real answers are to divert more taxpayers money to landlords, energy companies and creche owners. Not much long term thinking there,unless the plan is to set up another type of HAP system for energy bills and childcare. Whatever praise they're due, they've well gotten and if this is the best anybody could do in this situation then sound, but the situation is as much on them as anything else.
I've just stepped off the childminding gravy train so I haven't been following it. Anything in there to stop the industry just adding this on?
Ye to obtain the government supports prices have to be frozen at 2021 prices so they can't skim off the top.
I'm struggling to understand that measure. I'm assuming the money the government pays the creche is subtracted from the parents bill. If the creche increases its prices from 2021 levels,that support goes away so how does the creche deal with rising costs?
The parents fees would go up because the creche wouldn't be getting the subsidry for the children and presumably the idea is that the creche wouldn't be able to compete with the subsidised creches and would go out of business.
But if they can't meet their costs they'll go out of business anyway, and I'm assuming (again) that a raft of creche closures will leave a lot of parents without creche places for their kids?
The CORE funding programm almost doubles previous levels of grant, to avail of this uou had to commit to a price freeze last year, I think the sign up rate was 90 odd per cent, it was a very generous scheme. This today is now a measure at cutting the fees that were frozen for the parents and keeping the childcare providers square. I'm director of a Naionra in Cabra ( work for nothing and you'll never be idle) and I have to say Investment in the industry the last 2 years is a model that could be rolled out by various other gov departments.
Just noticed a sneaky one in there that I hadn't noticed before, they've included a notice to include a third income tax band but that they don't have the ability to have the structures in place for 2023 but could have them for Jan 2024. That's a warning shot that there's another higher income tax rate coming, I just can't for the life of understand at what point that's going to kick in and what the rate could be. Sounds like the reduction in the upper band might be only a temporary reprieve. Were the government to opt for the introduction of a third rate of income tax, it would require considerable change to the systems in both the Revenue Commissioners and payroll providers; changes that will need significant lead-time to implement. We are advised that this could be done for January 2024.