Budget 2025 supports must be long-term and not just band-aids before election, says Cork SVP co-ordinator

A cost of living focus in Budget 2025 is good news, but supports introduced must be long-term and not just band-aids until the next election, a Cork St. Vincent de Paul representative has said.

Addressing the National Economic Dialogue on Monday, Taoiseach Simon Harris noted that inflation is moderating with a marked downward trend since last year, but added, “right now, I know people are still hurting.” 

Therefore, Mr Harris said that the cost of living will once again be a focus for Budget 2025, promising extra funding to keep pace with the expanding population, a cost of living and welfare package that “protects the most vulnerable,” and that income tax bands and credits will be “properly indexed so that people do not drift into the higher rate band.” 

SVP Southwest Regional Co-ordinator Gerry Garvey told The Echo that the Taoiseach’s “broad intentions to keep focusing on the cost of living” were welcome, saying “we are seeing more and more people falling into the trap of not being able to make ends meet,” and highlighting food, transport, utilities and childcare as still too expensive.

Paschal Donohoe, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, also spoke at the event, explaining that since 2020, non-core or temporary expenditure has facilitated the government’s response to pressures such as Brexit, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and inflation.

“With inflation retreating faster than expected and the pandemic hopefully in the past too, the carefully phased withdrawal of these supports is underway,” but “risks do remain,” he said, adding that there will be a contingency reserve within the overall expenditure ceiling for 2025 to 2027 of €4.5 billion.

Also speaking at the event was Finance Minister Michael McGrath, who said “no Budget decisions have been taken as yet but there are a number of themes which will be foremost in our thinking as we frame the package.” 

As well as investing in public services, the minister said he will be bring forward a substantial income tax package, explaining “I expect to be in a position to deliver a further substantial income tax package in October which will again include changes to tax credits, the standard rate cut off point and the USC.”

Long-term policies 

Mr Garvey said SVP would welcome long-term policies over one-off measures, which he said, “while very useful, can create a false sense of security for a month or two - but then people are back where they started and costs haven’t gone down.

“So the government needs to look at the real cost of living and what people are getting from their wages or benefits – housing is a huge element of that.

“Every year we’re falling further behind– we need a big catch-up operation, because if you need 20,000 houses and you were building 10,000 then it goes up to 12,000, you’re still 8,000 behind, which is not much good to people who can’t get houses,” he said.

“Unfortunately, politicians tend to think of the next election, and what they can achieve between now and getting elected, but housing has got to be long-term and strategic - we are dramatically undersupplied and the country is not short of the money.”

In his speech, Mr Harris discussed the recently published report of the Housing Commission which makes 83 recommendations, three-quarters of which he says are already implemented, underway or partially underway.

Promising to progress as many of the recommendations as they can, he said, “more money helps, but it’s about so much more that.

“It means increasing the capacity of the construction sector, attracting more workers to the sector, being more efficient and productive, and promoting innovation."

Education costs 

Harris added that part of this includes expanding Ireland’s apprenticeship capacity, mentioning previous investments in education from school book schemes to fee reductions and increases to grant income thresholds for third-level students.

But much more needs to be done in this area, Mr Garvey said, explaining, “we’re having to support a lot of people at post-leaving cert level doing apprenticeships, degrees or diplomas - SUSI has fallen behind dramatically.

“In the South West (Cork and Kerry), SVP spent €650,000 last year on supporting a range of students in third level, if SUSI falls too short, then people won’t take up the course.

“it’s not appropriate in the long-term that a charity is filling that gap – we are delighted to be able to help, but we can’t do it forever.

“Once we’ve reached that €650,000 limit, there are people still looking for support, so the government need to seriously look at the SUSI situation and give people what they need to survive.”