Social welfare recipients are reportedly in for a "triple whammy" of payments in Budget 2023 next month.
The Irish Examiner report the changes will include a double once-off payment in the autumn, an increase of at least €10 to all welfare rates and the Christmas bonus to top it all off.
A double child benefit is expected which will make the return to school much easier for many parents countrywide.
Read more: Child Benefit could see huge boost as government consider one-off double payment
In more good news, taxes on alcohol and cigarettes look as though they will not see an increase this coming year.
This comes as a major change in trends which has seen the cost of a pack of 20 cigarettes increase by 50c each year over the past seven budgets.
Another consideration is allowing the local property tax to be deducted from rental income as an expense or allowing landlords to offset rental losses against other taxable income in the current year.
However, if a public-health rationale is put forward, an increase on cigarettes may be considered, although an increase in alcohol prices is said to be unlikely.
It comes as Leo Varadkar rowed back on the potential for a new 30% tax bracket.
TheTánaiste’s tax change proposal was met with lukewarm enthusiasm from some Cabinet colleagues, including finance minister and fellow Fine Gael minister, Paschal Donohoe, who said it would be “difficult” to implement at short notice. It’s understood that Fianna Fáil ministers were not too happy with the tax code change that would benefit the wealthier in society more than the poorer.
And now Mr Varadkar is pulling back from his plan in the face of the difficult task he would face pushing the tax plan through, saying now that it is only an “option” and admitting that it has not even been discussed at Cabinet. The Tánaiste said: “It’s just an option, it’s only ever been an option, an option that can be considered by the government between now and budget day.
“It hasn’t been considered by government yet and we’ve had no substantive discussions about it at this stage. So it’s just an option, it will be discussed, yes, all options will be discussed, but that’s not the same thing as saying that all options are likely to happen.
“When it comes to the budget, whether it’s on the tax side, the social welfare side, the spending side, there’s a list of options longer than my arm and yours put together and what will happen is that before budget day they’ll all be discussed.” There have been many promises ahead of the budget which takes place on September 27.
It led Minister Heather Humphreys to say yesterday that you would need to be “an octopus” to keep up with all the kites being flown by government ministers. She said: “I’d want to be an octopus to hold down all the kites that are being flown about the budget at the minute.”
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