THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS to “get a grip” and address “questions that have emerged” since the economy has started to recover, a Minister has said.

Pat Rabbitte also signalled that tax reliefs for those on “modest to middle incomes” could be on the table in Budget 2015.

Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said that the coalition parties had a “very strong single-minded purposeful focus in the first three years in office”.

“The last couple of months haven’t been good for government,” Minister Rabbitte said, “there is a need to get a grip.”

“We need to address the housing need in Dublin, we need to address that it is not acceptable that people are liable or can become liable to pay the marginal tax rate on the average working wage.”

“Six years into this recession, people are saying ‘we’ve had enough’,” he added.

He added that tax reliefs would be “economically justiciable” and would stimulate the flat consumer market.

Minister Rabbitte also set a time-frame for the implementation of an independent garda authority, saying that it would be in place by the end of this year.

He added that the Guerin report “makes very distressing reading”.

Rabbitte added that he felt it was unlikely that the type of conduct and problems indicated by the report was unlikely to be restricted to the Cavan-Monaghan area.

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