A COMMUNITY ORGANISATION has proposed an ‘alternative Budget’ to Finance Minister Michael Noonan, insisting it can save the required €3.6billion while protecting society’s most vulnerable people.
Social Justice Ireland said its policy proposals would make the tax system fairer, address the unemployment problem and help the “working poor” trapped by low wages.
It said the government should lean towards increasing taxes rather than cutting public spending – but suggested a levy on corporate profits instead of income tax increases. Dr Seán Healy of Social Justice Ireland said: “Ireland’s total tax-take is one of the lowest in the developed world and should be increased to be closer to the EU average. Otherwise Government decisions are likely to provide short-term gain but long-term pain.”
The key points of the Alternative Budget were:
In a statement, Social Justice Ireland said:
These proposals provide an integrated, coherent approach to building a fairer future that is both achievable and desirable. They are fiscally responsible. They protect Ireland’s poorest and most vulnerable people. They also seek to develop great! er fairness in the tax system and in Ireland’s response to its present series of crises.
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