Budget Provisions to boost Irish household incomes by over €2.5 Billion per year

An Taoiseach Bertie Ahern today said that the recent Budget was the most generous budget he had seen since first entering the Dáil in 1977.   

"The combined package of tax reductions, social welfare increases and childcare support delivered in Budget 2006 will boost Irish household income by over €2.5 billion per year.  In particular, I am pleased that our major increases in welfare payments will directly benefit some 970,000 people who claim weekly social welfare payments.  When their dependants are included a total of more than 1.5 million men, women and children in this country will benefit."

Mr Ahern said that this country is doing extraordinarily well and in order to ensure no one is left behind, the Government had brought forward the largest ever Budget package for welfare.  

"Total expenditure on welfare in 2006 will be €13.5 billion which is double what was spent as recently as 2000 and quadruple what Fine Gael and Labour spent when they were last in government.  I am proud that it is the poorest in our society who stand to gain the most from our Budget."

The Taoiseach pointed to the fact that analysis by the ESRI shows that the recent Budget is the most progressive budget this country has seen for many years.  Mr Ahern said: "The ESRI have found that the measures taken in Budget 2006, when benchmarked against the neutral yardstick average earnings growth, will boost the incomes of the poorest twenty percent of families by almost 7% with the next twenty percent gaining 4%.  On the other hand, those on middle to high incomes stand to gain a little over 1%."

In conclusion, the Taoiseach said this year's Budget emphasized once again that the Government is showing unprecedented commitment in tackling poverty, especially child poverty, and promoting social inclusion.  Among the other key measures in Budget 2006 pointed to by Mr Ahern are:

·        The largest ever welfare budget package of €1.12 billion.

·        This means that total expenditure on social welfare in 2006 will reach €13.5 billion, double what was spent in 2000.

·        The increases to social welfare rates, pensions and child benefit are all well ahead of inflation and will deliver real improvements to people's lives.

·        On the tax side, it ensures that those on the minimum wage are taken outside the tax net completely.

·        The new Early Childcare Supplement introduced in the recent Budget for every child up to the age of six will assist parents further with the cost of caring for their children during those years when expenses tend to be at their highest.   

·        Taken together with the increases in child benefit, which has been increased to €150 per month, it brings the amount a family will receive next year for each of the first two children to €2,800 per year.

ENDS