FG seeks budget boost for primary education

Fine Gael has urged Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy to invest more in primary education in this year’s budget, the details of which will be revealed this afternoon.

The party’s finance spokesman, Jim Mitchell, said: “Young people leaving school with learning difficulties are embarking on a life of disadvantage. We can stop that in 80% of the cases, if we tend to it.” Mr Mitchell also said that he would improve social welfare payments for the elderly.

“It’s awful that widows and people on long-term illness payments are in poverty living on £85-a-week,” he said.

The Labour Party has said that removing those on the minimum wage from the tax net is top of its budget wish-list. Labour’s finance spokesman, Derek McDowell, said: “If we formed the view as a society that we shouldn’t ask somebody to work for less than £183-a-week, then I don’t think it’s reasonable in those circumstances to say that nonetheless the Government will take some of that from you.”

He added that the objective of removing the lowest-paid workers from the tax net should have been achieved years ago.