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THE BODY REPRESENTING Ireland’s employers has called on the Government to abandon plans for €1.8 billion in new taxes over the next two Budgets – saying extra taxes would kill off Ireland’s delicate economic rebound.
The Irish Business and Employers’ Confederation (IBEC) says economic data for the first quarter of 2013 shows that consumer confidence remains fragile, with economic growth weaker than expected.
Its latest quarterly economic outlook (PDF), released this morning, says this weak growth could be killed off by levying further taxes and charges on consumers who still remain fearful about their finances in the medium term.
The group says the Irish economy will grow by 1.8 per cent this year – a significantly higher rate than projected by either the European Commission or the Irish Government – but that economies of other European countries could falter and drag us down.
“We need to press ahead with reducing public sector expenditure, but taking more money out of the economy through tax hikes is the wrong way to go,” said IBEC chief economist Fergal O’Brien.
“Fixing the public finances can only bring us so far – consumers need to see that the end is in sight before they will start spending again.”
O’Brien said the public had welcomed deals on the promissory notes, but that the public now needed to reap some of the benefits by having the burden of austerity lifted somewhat.
“The budgetary adjustment should be less than the €3.1 billion currently targeted,” he said.
“We now have the potential to abandon the planned tax increases and still hit a budget deficit of about 4.5 per cent, well below the target of 5.1 per cent.”
O’Brien said an adjustment of that scale would underline that Ireland remained committed to restoring order to its public finances, while limiting the damage that cuts could achieve.
A further €2 billion of adjustments is scheduled for Budget 2015, in order to conclusively bring Ireland within the 3 per cent debt limit set down by the EU’s excessive deficit programme and the EU-IMF bailout agreement.
Budget 2014 is to include €2 billion in spending cuts and €1.1 billion in new tax, while Budget 2015 is to have a further €700 million in tax increases.
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Ca ching! Just hit the jackpot on the gravy train.
@Paul Mc: or just maybe he has worked hard and is a good public representative and the best candidate for the job, time will tell so let’s give him benefit of the doubt before he ever even starts the job like you would in other professions
@Woolly: who do you buy your drugs from? They must be top class if you think any of them have anything but their own best interests at heart.
@Woolly: You gotta realize that the first and main objective of the normal Irish begrudge aka knacker is to knock and disparage their own representatives.
@David Byrne: Did you run for any of these great jobs?
@Paul Mc: the usual lazy comment
@Paul Mc: yea that all sounds very democratic, at least by EU standards it is
@Paul Mc: most predictable comment of the day. Well played. Bet you’re very happy with yourself and your 300 likes.
@Woolly: you really think that’s how it works?
@Woolly: you really think that’s how it works?
Dont we need a by election?
@Ruairi Colton: Not for European Parliament, same for County Councils.
@Ruairi Colton: Not for the EP, it is done on a list basis, and he was next on the list.
@Ruairi Colton: That’s only for Dáil and Seanad.
@Ruairi Colton: A list of suitable replacement candidates is put forward at the time when a person is selected to run to be a Member of the European Parliament. If they leave their position as an MEP during the term (death, illness, election to a national parliament, promotion to another position etc.), one of those on the list will take their place for the remainder.
@Lee Kelly (he/him): I guess the train has more than one carriage – who gets his job now. PS, obviously not the “best” candidate for MEP, just the replacement – up to the people of Ireland East to make sure he knows who he is accountable to.
@Reg: Friends; Indeed.,
Colm who? Besta luck to him.
@Brian Murphy: With any luck he won’t be seen coming within 2 metres of someone else and find himself hounded out of the job by our mob of self-righteous curtain twitchers.
@Tommy Roche: Funny you should bring that up. On a day when Debenham works were arrested for fighting for their rights and the likes of Calleary, Hogan , Buttimer were rightly publicly shamed and forced to resign, while bankers, juditry. Politicians , ex politicians especially one who now go unpunished, or the criminal trial of bankers like Sean Fitzpatrick whose criminal case collapsed because of shredded documents by the state..A witch hunt? A corrupt state protecting corrupt people.
@Tommy Roche: you need to be more subtle to be a good troll lad!!
@Tommy Roche: See the FG mob are out again today trying to bully concerned citizens.
This is wrong.
@Locojoe: why
@Locojoe: meh, other countries have a list system. Takes the Parish Pump out if it
huge shoes to fill. will be difficult to make a name in a huge constituency
@ed w: She must have big feet so because you surely weren’t referring to the role she plays as a euro technocrat.
have your say