Kenny: No income tax hikes coming in Budget
Taoiseach Enda Kenny has confirmed that the Budget will not include any increase to income taxes.
Enda Kenny has told the Dáil that the Programme for Government forbids any tax hikes and that the Budget will stick to it.
Sinn Féin's Gerry Adams said the Budget was going to prove difficult for families across the country because of extra burdens on them.
But the Taoiseach said income taxes will not be a feature.
"The fundamental issue of the Programme for Government here is that there would not be - and will not be - any income tax increases," he said.
"So your assertion that people are going to be faced with that is simply not true, and will be vindicated and justified by the Minister for Finance," he added.
Meanwhile there were rowdy scenes in the Dáil as Mr Kenny insisted that the Government is fixing the mortgage arrears crisis - and blamed Fianna Fáil for causing it.
The Taoiseach told the Dáil that the banks are making slow but steady progress in dealing with people in crisis, despite new figures from the Central Bank revealing that one in three home loans is over two years in arrears.
Mr Kenny, who said the Central Bank is now auditing figures submitted by the banks to make sure they are accurate, had some harsh words for Micheál Martin after the Fianna Fáil leader criticised the slow progress.;
"I'm not happy with the situation that the banks have not measured up to the mark - they have all the options nowm" he said.
"They have the...measures and the regulator is the Central Bank, Deputy Martin - and you never listen to anybody with your style of engagement," he added.
