The key points from Budget 2019

The Finance Minister described it as a “caring” budget that will secure Ireland’s future.

He spent some 75 minutes outlining the budget with spending plans amounting to 66.5 billion euro.

Here are some of the key points from Budget 2019:

– Spending on health will increase by a billion euro which brings the total budget for the Department of Health to 17 billion euro.

– Some 110 million euro will be set aside for Brexit-related measures across the Government. Brexit was described as the “political, economic and diplomatic challenge of our generation”.

– There will be a 50 cent reduction in prescription charges for those aged over 70.

– The cost of a packet of 20 cigarettes will be going up by 50 cent, to bring the total cost of a pack to 12.70 euro.

– Duties on alcohol go unchanged.

– There will be no changes in the price of diesel or petrol.

– In a bid to tackle the rising housing crisis in Ireland, the Government is to commit 2.3 billion euro to the housing programme. Over the next four years, 6.6 billion euro will go towards accelerating the “delivery of housing supports”.

– The VAT rate for the tourism and hospitality sector will increase from 9% to 13.5%, raising 466 million euro in extra taxes.

– To ease the burden facing low and middle income earners, the finance minister said he was raising the entry point for the higher rate of income tax for all earners by 750 euro. It means single workers will not have to pay the higher rate until they earn 35,300 euro per annum.

– Social welfare payments are to rise by five euro.

– Education spending will reach 10.8 billion euro in 2019. There will be an extra 1,300 posts in schools next year.

– From November next year, a new paid parental scheme will be introduced to provide two weeks’ leave to every parent of a child in their first year. This will increase this to seven extra weeks over time.

– Government will commit 1.25 billion euro for the delivery of 10,000 new social homes in 2019. An additional 121 million euro will be provided for the Housing Assistance Payment in 2019 to create an additional 16,760 new tenancies in 2019.

– As of January 1, landlords will be able to claim 100% mortgage interest relief on any loan used to purchase, improve or repair any residential rental property.

– Ireland’s long-standing 12.5% corporation tax will remain.

– An additional 1.26 billion euro in capital expenditure will be allocated between 2018 and 2021 to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport.

– An additional 40 million euro will be raised next year by increasing duty on betting firms from 15% to 25%. The Government will also double betting tax from 1% to 2% next year.

– The garda budget will rise by 60 million euro while the defence sector is to benefit from an extra 29 million euro.

– An extra 300 euro in the home carer credit will bring the total value to 1,500 euro per year.

– Extra money for rural regeneration.

– The film corporation tax credit will be extended beyond the current date of 2020 until December 2024.

– Newspaper VAT to stay at 9% while online newspaper VAT will be cut from 23% to 9%.