It’s the sum total of Coalition cynicism
Senior politicians and public servants pulling a pension of €150,000 are to have their pension cut by €80 a week.
The young people, who are carrying a disadvantage into adult life, are down €8 a week more than retired politicians and public servants whose lives have been padded out beyond all reason.
Both measures are heavy with cynicism. The high rollers had to take a hit in order to placate the great unwashed who bear the brunt of cuts of €2.2 billion and tax hikes of €1.6bn. But if the hit was too much, then the retirees might well go to the courts, and who knows what side the law could come down on in the untamed world of pensions? So they were relieved of just a few bob, little enough to ensure nobody would kick up a stink, but enough to be presented to the great unwashed as an example of sharing the pain.
The kids with disabilities were also an easy hit. Dressed up as a measure to align their allowance with that of job seekers of the same age, it was the most cynical element of the whole budget.
New claimants between the ages of 18 and 21 will now receive €100 a week, while those between 21 and 24 will get €144, both payments equalling those drawn by able-bodied jobseekers of the same age.
Except many people with disabilities are not in a position to seek out a job. And the nature of disabilities are such that extra bills mount up. But these considerations are disregarded when weighed against the political consequences.
There will be no feet on the street, no armies of protesters making a racket outside Leinster House. In order to protect the big ticket items, like college fees and child benefit — the beneficiaries of which include large swathes of the population who don’t need the payments — the debt was instead attacked with a raft of smaller cuts. This neutralises any major political fall out. If it means the most vulnerable like youths with disabilities getting it in the neck, then tough. You shouldn’t have believed the cynical rhetoric about protecting the most vulnerable.
Yesterday wasn’t quite as bad for those at the lower rungs of the socioeconomic ladder. Finance Minister Michael Noonan claims that 330,000 workers will benefit from his decision to raise the threshold for payment of the universal social charge from €4,000 to €10,000.
There was bad news for savers with an increase in DIRT, for motorists on tax and retailers on VAT.
All are deemed necessary, but whether or not all of these increases are worth it in order to leave income tax rates is a moot point. There was also a small ray of light for those who labour under huge mortgages taken out at the height of the madness between 2004 and 2008. An increase in mortgage interest relief for these homeowners will be welcomed in those homes this winter.
Of course, this measure was politically proofed as well. Among the large cohort of suburbia who will benefit from the measure are the young siblings of Breakfast Roll Man, he who won the 2007 election for Fianna Fáil. The recession’s incarnation of Breakfast Roll Man — Slice-Of-Bare-Toast man — gave Fine Gael the nod in huge droves last February, and now are due a little sweetener.
However, once again, those who have the most remain the least affected by austerity’s latest missile. There was nothing about further taxes for the ranks of high earners. Mr Noonan has conceded there are constitutional difficulties about abolishing upward only rents. A mooted increase of the USC for those on over €100,000 has been shelved. It’s just so much trouble to hit those with the capacity to bite back.
Cynical and all as the Government may have been in its formation of the budget, nothing beat the carry-on of Patrick Nulty.
On his election six weeks ago, the Labour Party TD for Dublin West knew exactly what was going down. He knew the extent of the cuts, the prospects for fewer jobs in the public service, and, arguably, was under the impression like the rest of us that cuts in social welfare would be much deeper. Yet he stood on a Labour ticket.
Then at the first fence, at a time of great upheaval in the country, he fled to the opposition benches. Smart boy that he is, he will know that himself and Joe Higgins will most likely be fighting it out for the last seat in the constituency at the next general election. And in the long tradition of Irish politics, his primary focus is on, not the country, not his party, but retaining his seat, even if just elected.
We get the politicians we deserve, but the same can’t be said of the budget. It was a missed opportunity to introduce a modicum of fairness at a time of living austerely.
