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TODAY MARKED THE second day of Budget 2012, as finance minister Michael Noonan announced measures to raise €1.6 billion in new tax and revenue incomes.
Yesterday, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin, announced the government’s plans to public spending by €2.2 billion, with a €1.4 billion cut in day-to-day State spending.
While Noonan had to raise €1.6 billion, his task was softened by a ‘carry-over’ of around €600m from existing measures – meaning his tasks were only to raise €1 billion, with some €670m coming from the long-expected VAT hike.
Here are the main details from Michael Noonan’s Budget 2012 speech:
The pre-budget leaks:
Yesterday, Minister Howlin announced a number of cost-saving measures, including a standardising of child benefit payments; an increase in the student registration fee; a cut in the back to school allowance for the parents of children aged between 4 and 11; the closure of 31 garda stations; and jobseekers’ benefit being paid out for a five rather than six day working week.
Additional reporting by Hugh O’Connell and Aoife Barry
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Pleased to say that I am almost 4 months free from cigs after 25 years. Took losing my brother in law to lung cancer in early May to give me the final urge to quit…… Will never touch one again!!!
Fair play, that’s a serious effort after 25 years. I’m the only non-smoker in my family but I’ve seen my sister and mother attempt to quit several times. My Dad says the smokes keep him sane!
My husband recently quit with the help of Cigg-e. Absolutely brilliant device and would highly recommended tutor anyone looking to quit.
I got liquid nicotine electronic device 6 weeks ago,wonderful invention i have no cravings,withdrawals,bad moods, etc can’t imagine that I will ever put another one of those horrible,tax laden filthy fags near my mouth again as long as I live yippee !!!
Which brand I’m getting off these filthy things, trouble is there is so many of these anti smoking devices and what’s safe. But I’m thinking they might tax these at a later stage.
@Baddrivingireland, it is called ” eGO-T” and the liquid is called “safevape” can be purchased at nextdoor off licences €50 including two batteries, two filters,and a bottle of liquid which will last you a month if you smoked 20 per day, hope his helps.
Cigg-e is also brilliant. My husband recently quit with that one and has never slipped..
We heard you the first time….there are so many of these devices about now and nobody has a clue what they’re inhaling..plenty..hope posters involved in the trade aren’t blatantly marketing on here
Nope,not involved in any way! I posted my original comment,further down someone asked for a brand name and I replied. Is that okay with you?
Weed free 6 years now, set a date and just stopped at 3pm 27 nov 2007, no pills,no batteries,nothing but fresh air,just like nature intended.
Which one did you use Martin?
Must try that! Thanks Martin!
Filthy habit
Regardless of whether it’s working on not it’s keeping non-smokers like me safe.
Still shocked that nearly half of those who are unemployed smoke versus about a quarter of those working. Social welfare payments are too high.
Early & strong contender for irrelevant comment of the day… Well played
Seriously? The lower the income, the more likely the smoking. That’s a shock to nobody.
These electronic cigs work. In my workplace of over 1200 people only a handful still smoke real cigs. Not to government bash but they really should promote these heavily and regulate the quality of the eliquid to ensure they are safe in order to further encourage people to give up.
As opposed to banning them outright or restricting their sale to chemists. I completely agree. Regulation and sensible taxation would guarantee quality control and offset dwindling cigarette revenue to some extent while also lowering the cost of smoking-related healthcare costs over time.
It shows that e-cigarettes are working.
If your family, friends or workmates stink of nicotine, tell them the smell is sickening.
Here’s a radical idea. If the government want people to quite smoking give out the electronic starter packs free to every smoker and then remove cigs from the market altogether. It’s often claimed that smokers cost the state more than the revenue received from cigs so there would be a saving overall.
I smoked for 14 years, and gave them up many years ago. I was against the pub ban, and thought it wouldn’t work (I was long given up by that time so was not affected), but it turns out most people like a smoke free environment. A heavy smoker friend doesn’t smoke in her proud new car! It is environmental. People I know who go to pubs less do so because of drink driving laws, nothing to do with smoke. Work places need to manage smoke breaks better.
Crack smoking is on the rise though
It’s craic smoking round here.
I’m 21. And anyone that starts smokin at my age or younger now is simply stupid. There are no positives to it. Cancer. Hole in the wallet. Generally bad hygiene (eg bad breath) .
I’ve been on E-cigs for nearly a year now. It’s mad to think they are going to remove them from the shop shelves as an option to the lethal real thing and give them to Pharmacies to whack their ridiculous margin on. It won’t effect me or most users as we buy bits online rather than disposables, but the fact I don’t smoke any more was down the option on the shelf one day last year. My chest x-rays show the biggest benefit. If governments want to regulate or ban something they should do it to the poisonous stuff and save a lot of lives. I smell a lobby from the vested interests of the other nicotine replacement product companies at work in Europe. Anyway, you can’t uninvent the wheel. You could buy a lifetime’s supply of nicotine in a small bottle now. Nicotine itself is no more dangerous as a substance than caffeine. Smoking gets you 230+ dangerous toxins. If I wanted to I can make a vaping device from a phone battery, wire, cotton wool with nicotine refined from other wild plant leaves. They can’t regulate that but it would be getting back into poitin territory ironically. Good fun though as long as the local A&E isn’t closed.
In our lifetimes aspartame will probably prove to be the biggest killer.
have your say