Budget 2017 reaction: 'We are seeing a re-run of vintage old politics,' says Sinn Féin

Update 12.15pm: Sinn Féin has accused Government of repeating boom-time economic mistakes amid widespread reports it is set to cut taxes, introduce property tax incentives and hand out "concessions" to coalition parties in a bid to buy voter support, writes Fiachra Ó Cionnaith of the Irish Examiner.

The opposition party's finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty and deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald made the claim this morning before the official announcement of budget 2017 at 1pm this afternoon.

Reports in today's Irish Examiner and other media outlets confirm that a string of incentives for pensioners, working people, young families and house hunters are due to take place, in addition to widespread tax cuts to benefit the wider public.

However, despite the €1.2bn of new public spending measures and tax cuts being within strict fiscal space rules in order to prevent another economic crisis, Sinn Féin has warned the country risks sleep-walking into another recession due to the measures.

"My fear is, and what we've heard so far would support this, is that the Government simply want to go back to the way that it was, to say lets reduce the broad taxation rates, lets bring in property tax incentives that will simply increase house prices, lets depend on vulnerable tax hits.

"In the noughties it was stamp duty, today its corporation tax. They are bringing us back to where it was with no vision as to where this Government is going in the future," finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty said.

His party colleague, Ms McDonald, added that despite hearing "a lot of guff over the last few months about new politics", the reality is the country is witnessing "a re-run of old, vintage, old politics".

"We've heard a lot guff over the last few months about new politics, but today is a key test. I believe that far from new politics what we are seeing is a re-run of old vintage old politics which is about concessions in inverted commas to the parties in government rather than looking at the big picture," she said.

Update 11.48am: Independent Alliance TD Kevin 'Boxer' Moran says this budget has a win for everybody.

He said: "We've done a great bit on agriculture and late last night Brexit was a big conversation, because we do know that Brexit is the biggest thing in town.

"And those of us in the Independent Alliance, we're happy now with our partners in Government and what is coming out of that."

"People will see the package today that is being announced by Michael Noonan and Paschal Donohoe in relation to Brexit is very good. There is a win for everybody in this budget, yes it's not what we'd like, we'd give more but the money is not there."

Update 11.07am: Labour Party Deputy Joan Burton has said that she is disappointed that a full restoration of the Christmas bonus for welfare recipients won't happen this year.

The former Social Protection Minister partly restored the payment, which had been scrapped by Fianna Fáil during the economic crisis.

“The money is there to go to the 100%,” she said.

“When you think of how the people who get the Christmas bonus spend it - pensioners, people on long-term benefits like disability, illness, people like lone parents – when you think that they spend it for Christmas on their own children, it also really reduces the risk of people resorting to money lenders.”

Earlier:

Green Party leader Eamon Ryan has criticised the proposed measures in Budget 2017, saying they lack vision.

However, he said that he is glad it isn't another austerity Budget.

“Listen, it’s a pleasure not to be going into a Budget which was cutting,” he said.

“The last time I was in here on a Budget was in 2010 – it was tough business.

“This time, thank God, that economic crisis we’re out of.

“But we’ve got to start thinking of where we go from here, and I don’t get any sense in this Budget, no sense of vision or long-term future.”