Peter Burke, TD, Minister of State at the Dept of the Taoiseach and at the Dept of Foreign Affairs and at the Dept of Defence,

SF budget ‘all about spend, spend, spend’ says Burke

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Sinn Féin will lump taxes on working families, increase inheritance tax and make the country less attractive for business, the local Fine Gael minister says.

Minister Peter Burke said today’s alternative budget from the main opposition party is “nothing more than spend, spend, spend” and it lacks plans to grow or protect the economy or a country at full employment.

“The economy is still grappling with a cost-of-living crisis, yet Sinn Féin propose 19 separate tax increases amounting to €2.85bn.

“Sinn Féin would lump taxes on ordinary families by increasing income tax by stealth, by not adjusting income tax bands for inflation (indexation) despite the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

“A worker on €45,000 will only get €375 under SF’s tax package. Effectively, Sinn Féin are increasing taxes for ordinary workers by not compensating for the impact of inflation.

“Inflation has been a worldwide economic issue since we emerged from the pandemic, but it doesn’t exist in Pearse Doherty’s faulty financial forecasts.

“Sinn Féin will increase tax on inheriting the family home. Mary Lou McDonald and her party want to increase the rate of Inheritance Tax (CAT) by 3%, from 33% to 36%. Under SF, families would have to sell their homes after the death of parents to pay the tax bill.

“At a time when the ESRI forecasts that our economy is slowing down and corporation tax receipts are falling, Sinn Féin propose four separate taxes worth €1.2bn on high income earners. They include employers PRSI, which is a direct tax on jobs, and a new rate of income tax.

“These reckless measures will reduce foreign investment in growing sectors like pharma and ICT.

“Less investment means fewer jobs of every sort, including middle-income jobs, and jobs in local SMEs who provide support services. Everyone loses out when you wreck the economy.

“Sinn Féin would also make it harder for workers to save for the future by cutting pension tax relief.

“As usual, Sinn Féin have written a 50-page document with no mention of how to grow an economy and create jobs. It’s all about spend, spend, spend,” Minister Burke said.

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