Average worker will be €1,000 better off in budget, claims Jack Chambers
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The average worker will be at least €1,000 better off following income tax reductions and cost-of-living payments in Budget 2025, the finance minister has said.
Jack Chambers said there will be a particular focus on low- and middle-income earners in the upcoming budget with energy credits and reductions in USC to be key to the plans.
He would not be drawn on an exact percentage reduction in USC but said it will be a substantial focus in how the income tax package is designed.
Mr Chambers said that any party stating that they would abolish USC overnight "is not being honest about their management of the economy" saying it would pose a risk if done.
"I think we can make progressive changes in each budget where the USC can be a component of our tax package but it has to be sustainable into the long term," he said.
Speaking at the Fianna Fáil think-in, Mr Chambers said the cost-of-living package will be a one-off package to support families through the winter period.
"We are now in a new front when it comes to the fiscal rules and anything that is spent in 2025 has to be accounted for in the €8.3bn allocation which we have agreed as a government in the Summer Economic Statement," he said.
"So, a lot of the prioritisation for the cost-of-living package will be in quarter four and how we calibrate energy credits and other measures will have to reflect the fiscal parameters that we are in."
This will dictate how the government decides to spread out energy credits to support people through the winter period but Mr Chambers said the details are still being finalised.
In terms of the zoned land tax, Mr Chambers welcomed declarations from all three coalition parties on excluding active farmers from the tax after serious concerns were raised.
Work is underway to design a process which ensures active farmers have a route out of the tax while ensuring those who are hoarding land that could be used for housing will still be subjected to the tax, he said.
His statement comes following an exclusive Irish Examiner poll which shows that support for Fianna Fáil among farmers and those living in rural areas is at 22%.
The finance minister rejected suggestions that the government is at risk of repeating the mistakes made ahead of the last economic crash. He said that all decisions taken are about looking to the medium- and long-term prosperity of the country.
Mr Chambers said that even with €6bn being put into the Future Ireland Fund, he expects a significant surplus again this year — perhaps even greater than last year.
"We are being really careful about how we spend in terms of day-to-day decisions and why public spending measures are the same this year as they were last year.
"That is the trajectory of the future, that we moderate our spending in terms of current measures but we really get ambitious on driving infrastructure delivery in our economy which will deliver more growth and address some of the deficits and gaps that have been well identified."