In case you missed what went down at Budget 2014 today, deliberately or otherwise, here are the main things you need to know.
With wall to wall coverage on TV, radio, online, in taxi cabs up and down the country and elsewhere, it was hard to avoid hearing about Budget 2014 today but if you tried to avoid the long meandering speeches, the insult-trading and even more talk of doom, gloom, austerity and the like, then we wouldn’t really blame you.
People need to know how they’re going to be affected by the measures introduced today, however, so we’ve tried to separate the wheat from the chaff and deliver a succinct summary of the most relevant and most important points so you’ll know how your pocket will be hit and you’ll be able to bluff your way through the inevitable conversations you’ll have to have in the next couple of days.
So, without further ado, here goes:
- Fags and booze: Excise duty on a pint of beer/cider and a measure of spirits has gone up by 10 cents, as it has on a box of cigarettes, with smokers perhaps not as badly hit as expected. A year after it went up by €1 in Budget 2013, a bottle of wine has been hit with a further 50 cent charge, much to the chagrin, no doubt, of student Buckfast drinkers amongst others.
- Income tax rates, the Universal Social Charge and PRSI have remained untouched, so expect your wage slip to remain pretty much as it is at the moment.
- The price of petrol and diesel will stay as it is for the second year in a row. There will also be no increase in the cost of Motor Tax.
- All children under the age of five will now be able to benefit from free GP care.
- Dole claimants aged 25 will receive €144 per week from January onwards, dole claimants aged 18-24 will receive a reduced rate of €100 per week.
- A standard maternity benefit of €230 per week will be introduced for new claimants from January. Child benefit will remain at €130 per month.
- The corporate tax rate will remain at 12.5%. Indeed, Michael Noonan stated that the government were 100% committed to that rate. DIRT tax rate increased from 33% to 41%.
- Your interest in Budget 2014, now that you know the main points, has probably dropped from about 50% to somewhere around 5%.
In summary, thanks to Colm Tobin…
