Measures take money from 'working poor'

UNION REACTION:THE BUDGET lacks any sense of common good and prioritises banks over the working poor, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has said. It accused the Government of providing no sustainable growth or jobs plans and instead focusing on cutting the incomes of low and middle-income earners.

Congress general secretary David Begg said: “There is no sense of the common good, no sense of the vision that should underpin any society.

“They will pump €50 billion into the banks and take €15 billion out of the pockets of the working poor. That is unacceptable and completely unsustainable.”

Siptu president Jack O’Connor expressed doubt about the growth figures underpinning the Budget and said that there was no provision for investment or job creation. He said the cuts insulated the rich and targeted low and middle-income earners, who would contribute €1.15 billion as a result of changes to tax bands and credits.

“Parallel with this, people who have been contributing tax all their working lives and paying their PRSI are to suffer further reductions in the meagre benefits they receive when they are unfortunate enough to lose their jobs.”

Hospitality and retail union Mandate accused the Government of “scapegoating” lower and middle-income workers and said that when combined with the proposed €1 cut to the minimum wage, the Budget represented an extraordinary “double whammy” aimed at the “working poor”.

Mandate general secretary John Douglas said the Government’s tax strategy was regressive as it did not address the issue of getting more tax from those on very high incomes.

Impact said the Budget was a recipe for economic failure and that by targeting lower-paid workers, the Government was likely to prolong the crisis.