The once-off cost-of-living package announced by the Government will help older people and those with lower incomes but permanent measures are needed to help vulnerable households, according to civil society organisations.
Business groups, meanwhile, broadly welcomed the measures announced by the Coalition on Tuesday.
A key part of the package is an extra €200 payment in April for pensioners and other recipients of social protection benefits.
Age Action’s head of advocacy, Celine Clarke, said the payment would cover “some of the lost spending power experienced by older people who depend on the State pension”.
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However, the organisation wants a long-term benchmarking and indexing of social welfare payments so that when the cost of living rises, the State pension does too.
Social Justice Ireland (SJI) chief executive Dr Seán Healy argued that people had been “left behind” by the cost-of-living package, accusing the Government of repeating “the same mistake it made in the budget, relying on one-off, short-term payments rather than increasing core social welfare rates”.
[ Government’s new cost-of-living package: What’s in it for me?Opens in new window ]
The Government increased core social protection rates by €12 per week in the budget.
Like SJI, the Society of the St Vincent de Paul (SVP) has been seeking additional €8-per-week social welfare increases.
It welcomed the more than €400 million in social protection measures announced by the Government but said increasing core social welfare rates “would have been more effective in ensuring those on the lowest incomes are not pulled further into poverty”.
SVP said the €100 extra for the back-to-school clothing and footwear allowance was a welcome measure that would help struggling families on low income and it also welcomed the expansion of the school meals programme.
Children’s charity Barnardos said the Government measures would “go some way to help families struggling to meet essential costs and help prevent children going without”.
Employers’ group Ibec said the package announced by the Coalition would “support business confidence and activity”.
It welcomed changes to the Temporary Business Energy Supports Scheme (TBESS), and the extension – until the end of August – of the 9 per cent VAT rate for the hospitality sector.
The TBESS has been extended for another three months, following a lower-than-expected level of uptake.
The terms will be more generous – with up to €15,000 per business available, or €45,000 for a firm with multiple sites.
[ Government announces new cost-of-living packageOpens in new window ]
Also, the eligibility has been tweaked so that more businesses will qualify.
Ibec executive director of lobbying and influence Fergal O’Brien said: “It is welcome to see reforms to the TBESS as the previous eligibility criteria and support levels were too restrictive, leading to poor take-up from industry despite there being an ongoing energy-affordability crisis.”
He also said: “While business would have preferred to see the 9 per cent VAT rate made a permanent fixture, [the] announcement will provide some relief and certainty.”
The Government has said the extension of the reduced VAT rate will be the last one.
Publicans group the Licensed Vintners’ Association said it was “positive that the Government has kept the extra tax on consumers off the menu” by pushing back the VAT increase on hospitality until after the summer season.
Denyse Campbell, president of the Irish Hotels’ Federation, said the Government measures gave tourism businesses “greater certainty as they grapple with the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on Irish consumers and key overseas markets”.
She continued to argue for the retention of the 9 per cent VAT rate, saying it was the “right rate for Ireland” and would be in line with European neighbours.
