EMILY IS single and 30 years old and has been living in Co Kildare for the past four years. She works as a nurse in Tallaght Hospital and earns a salary of €32,500.

Emily owns her own two- bedroom apartment and rents the spare room for €600 a month to a colleague. She avails of the rent-a- room relief and does not have to pay income tax on the rental income. She is relieved that the Minister did not abolish or restrict the rent-a-room relief.

As a result, she can continue to receive this rental income tax free and will still be able to meet the monthly mortgage repayments on her apartment.

Although she is a first-time buyer, she is not happy that the Minister has abolished mortgage interest relief for non first-time buyers.

Emily is also upset at the introduction of the public service workers’ pension levy as she feels that the levy was too severe on public servants who have low to moderate incomes. However, she is happy that the Minister has taken steps to lessen the impact of the pension levy by introducing new thresholds.

Emily is considering doing a part-time course in midwifery and notes that no changes were introduced by the Minister to allow her to claim tax relief for tuition fees on part-time courses.

As a result of the Budget, Emily is worse off by €48 a month.