Cowen 'out of touch with reality' - ICTU
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has accused Minister for Finance Brian Cowen of being out of touch with reality.
Reacting to yesterday's budget, ICTU says Mr Cowen concentrated on bricks and mortar rather than families and working people.
The organisation's general secretary, David Begg, says slight tax credit increases will do little or nothing to help people earning the average industrial wage.
He also says confining mortgage interest relief changes to first-time buyers will be a stimulus to the building industry and will not assist existing mortgage payers struggling to meet repayments.
However, he has avoided criticising the stamp-duty changes, saying it is too early to say what the effect will be.
Mr Begg says social welfare and pension increases are not as good as they look amid rising food prices and the budget is bereft of social policy, doing nothing to address the problems faced by parents raising families.
