Budget 2002

Margaret McKearney... 8 Dec 2002

December 4 2002 witnessed the Minister of Finance deliver his sixth budget.  Lobbyists on behalf of the Banks, the Farmers, and the Estate Agents, amongst others rushed to air their grievances.  The Irish financial institutions declared themselves stunned at the projected €300m levy, which being phased into place over three years, hardly begins to dent previous profits extorted by these institutions by their utilisation of recent legal loopholes.  Likewise the Estate agents have declared that the decision to increase stamp duty will drive commercial speculators abroad, and the farmers are threatening to pull out of the partnership talks completely over a removal of capital gains tax relief on compensatory monies paid to farmers whose lands had been acquired for the national land building programme.

What ever about meagre justification the last category may lay claim to, (though the millions gained by the group in various re-zoning scandals springs to mind) the other two categories are leeches on society and have over the decades grown complacent in their greed.  However the measures introduced by McCreevy will only scratch the surface of the profits made by these two types of organisations and their outrage merely reflects their arrogant disbelief at being targeted at all, rather than the hurt that it will involve.

Likewise the Government announced an increase on spirits and “alcopops” in an attempt to curb underage drinking, a measure that will hardly stop the teenagers in their tracks on the way to the Clubs and Off Licences.  Equally derisory is the increase of 50 cents on the price of a packet of cigarettes. Where is the increase in the budget to educate our young on the dangers of alcohol and nicotine abuse? Where is the will to fund and provide youth services and alternative outlets for their energies?  However these are not the issues empowering this decision, rather in the face of public and media concern, McCreevy has chosen to placate the powerful drinks and tobacco lobby and has by no means priced these drugs out of range for a considerable number of Irish teenagers.

Once again the Government has maintained the status quo; the real losers are the poorly paid and the unemployed, the elderly and indeed any vulnerable in our society.  The scandalous increase announced in the basic social welfare allowance of six Euro and compatible increases in other rates is completely negated by a multiplicity of insidious measures which will further erode their meagre standard of living.  Perhaps the far-reaching increase the raising of the lower rate of VAT b one per cent.  While this did not measure high on the Richter scale of shocks, all essential utilities are subject to this tax, this means that gas, electricity, and ‘phone prices will rise from January 2003.

In addition the expected and indeed long promised increase of between €31 and €38 in child benefit failed to materialise.  This cuts to the heart of many families already existing either on or below the poverty line, contrary to often publicised assertions by the right concerning the abuse of this benefit, this is one of the most effective ways of ensuring child and mother welfare and dignity.  Even the simple method of providing the back to school allowance earlier in the year was denied to the recipients.  By paying out in September as opposed to a more realistic July means the students are forced to return to schools either with ill-fitting uniforms at none at all, a mean and vindictive swipe at the already under privileged.

Furthermore the Budget failed to allocate increased expenditure for social housing programmes and correspondingly, for those who are forced by lack of public housing, to rent form the increasingly avaricious private sector, they have increased their personal contribution.  This alone obliterates the miniscule increase in the basic social welfare payment.  The minister delivered other attacks on the weak and defenceless, the much hyped cut in the public service will probably not effect the top-flight civil servants, however it will mean less public teachers for state schools, less nurses and doctors for public wards, less community activists, the list goes on.  But for those who can pay for these services no doubt there will be no scarcity.  All the above measures and many more amounts to an all out attack against the weak and defenceless.

While the economy has slowed down we have still come through a period of unprecedented prosperity in the history of this state.  We have become used to talk of surplus, surely in Basic English this means left-over, or remaining unused, if so where is it.  If in a time of slow-down this cannot be used to relieve the very section that will feel the pinch hardest then the government must answer some very hard questions.  Where did the surplus go?  We do not need another tribunal to answer that question; it is there on the plate of every financial institution, blood-stock agency, drinks and tobacco company, multi-nationals and indeed several politicians.  Where it is not is well documented in the piece of proposed legislation which was the budget 2002. 

Margaret McKearney... 8 Dec 2002