GOVERNMENT WILL “LOOK at” lowering the rate of the Universal Social Charge (USC) on a phased basis over the forthcoming budgets, junior minister Christopher O’Sullivan said.

O’Sullivan was speaking after Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald yesterday called for the scrapping of USC as part of an emergency budget in her leader’s address at the party’s Ard Fheis in Belfast.

She also called for a “substantial cut to excise” on fuel, including the complete removal of carbon tax on home heating oil and green diesel. 

A €400 energy credit, a €500 cost of disability payment and additional support for social welfare, pensioners, child benefit, and fuel allowance were among the proposals McDonald set out for an emergency budget.

“There must be immediate relief for taxpayers, for working people,” she said, hitting out at USC as “the Fianna Fáil tax introduced when they crashed the Irish economy”.

On RTÉ’s The Week in Politics, O’Sullivan criticised the party for its fiscal approach.

“It’s interesting, they [Sinn Féin] allude to this massive budget to pay for everything but they’ll scrap every tax, which is obviously the important way of earning revenues in terms of investing in the country,” the Fianna Fáil TD said.

He said government has tweaked the USC over previous budgets and broadened the brackets. “People have received relief from USC in previous years. We intend to do that over the coming budgets as well,” he continued.

“USC is obviously something we will look at.”

Asked if government would scrap the tax, which was brought in as a temporary measure in 2011 during the financial crisis, O’Sullivan said it would be lowered on a “phased basis” over the next few budgets.

Government will also look at other taxes, including income tax, he said.

USC is levied if one’s gross income is more than €13,000 per year, and is taxed at the rate of 0.5% up to €12,012.01, 2% from there to €28,700, 3% from there to €70,044, and 8% from €70,044.01 and over.

Self-employed income over €100,000 is subject to USC at 11%.

Do you think USC should be scrapped?