Unite: Budget means recovery for a few, continued squeeze for the rest
The trade union Unite has accused the Government of squandering the recovery after today's Budget.
The union said that low and average earners, as well as Social Protection recipients, will lose out in a Budget which "will see most people experience a real drop in living standards".
The Minister for Finance Michael Noonan said that the entry level at which the Universal Social Charge is paid is being raised to €12,000.
He also announced two new USC rates of 8% for anyone earning more than €70,000 a year and an 11% rate for the self employed earning more than €100,000 per annum.
The standard income tax rate band will increase by €1,000 and the higher income tax rate will drop from of 41% to 40%.
Unite pointed out that, for many people, any changes in the income tax and USC systems will be cancelled out by water charges.
They also claimed that those workers who do not earn enough to pay tax will not benefit at all from the water tax credits.
Unite's Regional Secretary, Jimmy Kelly, said: "This is a Budget of missed opportunities. The Government is squandering the recovery.
"A staggering 70% of people in the workforce – those on less than €32,800 per annum – will derive no benefit from today’s income tax changes, and will benefit only marginally from changes to the USC, which will be offset by the water charges in a large number of cases.
Tax refunds to offset water charges were announced in today's Budget with the household benefits package to be increased by €100 in order to alleviate the water charge cost.
Mr Kelly said: "It is clear that water charges are the elephant in the room of the Government’s budgetary policy.
"Hundreds of thousands of super-low-earners - those who are not in the tax net - will derive no benefit from the water tax credit or other tax changes, and will not be eligible for the Household Benefits package extension."
He went on to say that the €5 increase in child benefit for all children will not offset the impact of rising childcare and back-to-school costs.
He said: "The small increase in Child Benefit - just over €1 per week per child, or less than the price of a litre of milk - will not offset the continuing real cuts in Social Protection payments, the value of which are falling after inflation is taken into account.
"Overall, Budget 2015 indicates that austerity is not over - it is merely entering a new phase, with recovery for a few at the top and a continued squeeze on living standards for the rest of us."
