Sir, – The Cabinet has decided to open the public purse for a new €250 million package of energy supports, this time to put money back into the pockets of private citizens to ease motoring costs, etc. When this money is spent Ireland will once again be left with nothing to show for it all.
Would it not be better for the common good of our society to put this public purse towards modernising our public transport infrastructure and renewable energies? – Yours, etc,
GERALDINE SIMMIE
Furbo,
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Co Galway.
Sir, – After three weeks of dithering, the Government has agreed an extremely modest cut to excise duty on fuel which will cost €250 million, or €83 million per month. The tax foregone will be recouped in any event by increased VAT receipts on the higher wholesale prices of fuel.
Your newspaper recently reported a warning by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council that public spending for 2025 had run €4 billion over budget, or about €330 million per month.
What does it say about our political system that grotesque overruns in public spending cause scarcely a murmur in Dáil Éireann, but that even the smallest tax cuts, such as the temporary excise cut or the recent cut to VAT on hospitality, are bitterly contested and only happen after weeks or months of political wrangling?
It’s a depressing illustration of the extent to which all sides of the political spectrum have become addicted to a high-tax, high-spend economic model which puts Ireland at grave risk of financial catastrophe in the event of a world economic downturn. – Yours, etc,
BARRY WALSH
Clontarf,
Dublin 3.
Sir, – The Government’s emergency response to the oil price rises highlights once again our continued dependence on oil imports, the amount of which has barely moved since 2009.
An emergency response is one thing, but consumers are still today buying petrol and diesel cars, storing up problems for the future which future governments will inevitably be pleaded with to solve. With the electric car market now mature and already matching petrol car sales, surely it’s time for the Government to set a clear deadline to phase out fossil fuel car sales and set out an additional emergency plan to urgently accelerate this transition.
Until then Ireland will remain vulnerable to global oil markets and the cars on Ireland’s roads will continue to accelerate the climate crisis and all the destruction that comes with it. – Yours, etc,
COLIN ROCHE
Brussels,
Belgium.
