The December budget - Now’s the time to have your say

BECAUSE Finance Minister Brian Lenihan will have to find a way to raise or save billions in the December budget – just five months away – we can expect all sorts of speculation between now and then about how he might reach the commitments made to the EU.

It is difficult not to consider his options without a degree of trepidation though that trepidation deepens at the notion that he will slip into pre-election mode and decide not to confront the consequences of our collective lunacy. It is inevitable that the tax base will be broadened but it is equally inevitable that anyone facing new taxes will be unhappy.

In the Dáil yesterday Taoiseach Brian Cowen, naturally enough, declined to say if there would be a property tax or not. Report after report has advocated some sort of property tax and most European countries already pay such a levy. In our case a property tax would be regarded as a successor to rates but it is unlikely that local authorities could expect to share in the revenue.

But there are a bigger questions to consider.

As well as the prospect of a property tax we may face water charges; third-level students may face college fees despite the Greens’ best efforts. We may see tax breaks on health insurance premiums and pension contributions end. There may be an increase in the recently introduced tax on second homes and carbon levies.

These proposals would be of immediate concern to those on reasonable incomes; those above the usual thresholds but not so far above them as to be immune from new taxes.

Those dependent on social welfare may face an entirely different set of changes but it is unlikely that they will avoid making some contribution. Inevitably this will provoke protest but what’s the alternative?

Medical inflation is rampant and it is hard to see how tax breaks on health insurance premiums could be curtailed as our health system struggles on so many levels.

It is hard too to see the logic in imposing further levies on someone who is paying into a pension fund that is in deficit. These people, most especially those dependent on private pension schemes, will have already lost a considerable proportion of their pension savings and have little or no choice about making extra contributions in an effort to avoid a disappointing retirement income. This might prove a particularly sticky issue as those entitled to a public pension are far better off than many of their contemporaries in private schemes. Now is the time to consider these issues and make your feelings known, there won’t be much point in protesting in December after Mr Lenihan introduces what is sure to be a challenging package.