Favour taxes over spending cuts, urges think tank

The Government should protect employment levels and domestic demand by maintaining total expenditure at 2012 levels in December’s budget.

To pay for this, revenue should be increased by 1% of GDP through higher taxes on incomes more than €100k and a wealth tax, the Nevin Economic Research Institute (Neri) says in its autumn review of the economy.

Neri, which is funded by ICTU-affiliated trade unions, says the Government’s priorities in the budget should be to maintain current levels of investment in capital programmes, invest in a new stimulus programme aimed at key infrastructure, and protect the incomes of the most economically vulnerable households.