Budget 2007 - Government Must Curb Inflationary Practices, Invest in People and Employment Rights
8 Nov 2006
Congress General Secretary David Begg today called for a curb on "official inflationary practices and policies", to ensure people received the full value of pay increases agreed under Towards 2016.
The forthcoming budget also needed to "invest in people at all stages of their lifecycle and invest in protection of workers rights," Mr Begg said.
Launching the Congress 2007 pre Budget Submission, Mr Begg said: "Government needs to focus on curbing inflationary practices that could eat away at agreed pay increases. For example, recent gas and electricity price hikes were wrong and the regulatory regime in that sector is now driving inflation in pursuit of a flawed competition
"In terms of spreading our prosperity, we also need to start investing in people at all stages of their lifecycle: that means affordable and appropriate childcare; a properly-resourced education system; enabling people to upskill while at work; ending privatisation by stealth in the health service as it feeds inequality; ensuring the pensions crisis is addressed; investing heavily in public transport to improve peoples' quality of life."
Mr Begg also said that the new employment rights model agreed under Towards 2016 must be fully-resourced.
"This is not an optional extra - this is central to where we as a society see ourselves. Are we to opt for the bargain basement model where human dignity become a luxury, or do we aspire to be a society which upholds and enforces the highest standards?
Key Congress Recommendations
Pay & Tax
It is imperative that the Budget be used - both in respect of direct and indirect taxation measures - to support the income increase effect of the agreement by increasing real incomes and moderating price increases.
(a) Tax Credits: Increase employee Tax Credit by at least €350;
Increase personal TC by €60.6
(b) Tax Bands: Single person's standard-rate band should be increased by at
least €5,000 pa.
(c) Age tax Credit: Raised to €30 Single and €700 Married.
Education & Upskilling
The role of education in economic growth is now recognised and investment in this area generates high returns to workers, firms and the country. Congress wants to see strong investment in enhancing the skills of those with low educational attainment, encouraging children to remain in schools etc. Investment in education generates a high and proven return.
Care
An economy with the high average income of Ireland must now invest strongly in the care of all its citizens: the young, disabled, vulnerable and elderly. We must also invest in hospitals, schools, health and care centres etc, which are fully resourced and properly staffed.
More needs to be done in this budget to assist working parents with the cost of their childcare and to implement the Towards 2016 commitment "to continue to work together over a ten-year period to develop an infrastructure to provide quality, affordable childcare and to work towards increasing the supply of childcare places (of all types) by 100,000 over this period."
Pensions
Congress believes the pensions' challenge must be met through action on a number of fronts: social welfare pensions must be improved and secured for the future; occupational pension schemes must be protected, extended and improved; ways must be found of increasing contributions to occupational and personal schemes to ensure they deliver adequate pensions. Profitable companies should not be allowed to renege on pension commitments simply to further increase their profits; and all employers not already making adequate pension provision for their employees should be obliged to start doing so.
Employment Rights Compliance
In Towards 2016, Section VII is devoted to strengthening employment rights and compliance. There are many new initiatives contained in the new employments rights regime, such as the Joint Investigative Units, formed between Revenue, Social Welfare and Officers of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, a strengthening the RCT system and importantly the establishment of the Office of the Director of Employment Rights Compliance with legal, accounting and other administrative support staff. These require proper resourcing. Sufficient resources are also needed to ensure the increase in the number of Labour Inspectors to 90 by the end of 2007 and an increase in the number of Rights Commissioners. We are also calling for an increase in resources to assist the Equality Tribunal in dealing with backlog of cases.
ends