Budget comment: Well done if you're a young parent, low earner buying your first home

An incentive for first-time buyers, a new universal childcare package and small cuts to USC will all benefit that small cohort who ticked the box outlined above.

But while those who can fork out €400,000 for their first home will receive a generous €20,000 house-warming present through a tax rebate, many of measures in Budget 2017 were spread out so thinly they are almost translucent.

The Government can't be blamed really - they only had €1.2bn to play around with and decided to go down the "fair" route giving a little to everyone from pensioners, to landlords, farmers, entrepreneurs and to carers and those with disabilities.

But back to the budget big winner.

A package to help first-time buyers get their foot on the property ladder had been well flagged by Housing Minister Simon Coveney long in advance of Budget 2017.

The help-to-buy scheme will provide a rebate of income tax paid over the previous four tax years. This rebate will be up to a maximum of 5% of the purchase price of a new home up to a value of €400,000.

Mr Noonan said pro-rata rates will apply to lower priced houses and a full rebate will be also calculated on the first €4000,000 of homes bought for up to €600,000.

There will be nothing for those who can afford to buy a property worth more than €600,000 and you can forget about any new home gift if you buy a second-hand house.

Responding to the Budget, Micheal McGrath also questioned the rebate.

"If you are a returning emigrant and you haven’t paid taxes in Ireland in recent years, are you denied the right to benefit from the scheme?

"If you want to remain in your local community and there happens to be no new housing supply there, are you denied the right to benefit from the scheme because you’re forced to buy a second hand home?

"What if you are on modest income and haven’t been enormous tax in recent years, are you denied the right to benefit from the scheme?" he told the Dáil.

But one thing that was universally applied and will now be universally cut is the USC.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan told the Dáil that the 1% rate will go down to 0.5% The 3% rate will go down to 2.5% and the 5.5% rate will go down to 5%.

It means that a person earning €40,000 will be around €200 better off in 2017 - good job those first-time buyers are getting the extra help in saving for steep house deposits.

Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe today announced a universal childcare package and Children's Minister Katherine Zappone fought hard to win some subsidy for all parents regardless of their income.

It has been confirmed that all parents with children aged between six months and three years in childcare will be entitled to up to €900 in State subsidies a year.

"A new Single Affordable Childcare Scheme from September 2017, which will provide both means-tested subsidies, based on parental income, for children between six months and 15 years and universal subsidies for all children aged six months to three years," Mr Donohoe told the Dáil.

So put the feet up in your new gaff, crack open the €200 bottle of champers - there has been no VAT increase on alcohol - and enjoy the sweet sound of silence as the kids run free in childcare.