Government will complete full term before election, Simon Harris says

By Jonathan McCambridge, PA

Taoiseach Simon Harris has said he is sticking to his commitment that the Coalition Government will serve its full term.

Delivering a speech at the Ibec President’s dinner in Dublin, Mr Harris said it was his 150th day in office.

The next general election in the Republic would take place next year if the Coalition runs its full term. However, there has been speculation that a poll could be called before then.

Mr Harris said: “I’m sticking with the commitment of the three-party leaders to complete our term and the truth is that is not all that far away.”

The Taoiseach said the Budget to be delivered next month would contain “another pro-business package” including changes to the tax system to encourage innovation and investment.

He said: “As part of a €1.4 billion tax package, the Budget will also contain a significant income tax and USC (Universal Social Charge) reduction package, which will benefit workers and households, and help to keep our tax system competitive.

“Simply put, I and my party believe that nobody on the average wage should be paying the higher rate of income tax.

“As a country we have worked hard to reach full employment, and we want to ensure we make work pay.”

Mr Harris said no previous government had invested so much in schools, hospitals, roads, water and housing.

He added: “2025 will be another record year – close to €15 billion – more than triple what it was when I first became a minister in 2014.

“But I also know that this investment still isn’t enough, it’s not happening quickly enough, and we are not getting as much bang for our buck as we should.

“Inflation has eroded the funding of our National Development Plan, and we need to get a lot better at delivering projects on budget and on time.”