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2005

Sustaining Progress tax commitments far from being met

Date Released: 06 Oct 2005

"The Government has been strangely silent about fulfilling its tax commitments under the terms of the current "Sustaining Progress" agreement, even though these commitments are required to be met in full by this December's Budget. It is unfortunately the case that the opposition parties have been no less silent on where they as an alternative Government would stand in respect of such partnership agreement commitments".

This was the message on taxation given to SIPTU's Delegate Conference this afternoon by the Union's Head of Research, Manus O'Riordan.

"Under the present Agreement the Government undertook to make steady progress towards the target where 80 percent of all earners would pay tax at no more than the standard rate. Yet the very opposite has happened. Although a level of 72 percent had been reached in 2002, Government budgetary policy subsequently went into reverse gear in respect of this promise, and the proportion fell back to 67 percent. Whereas previously it could have been maintained - during the years 2001 to 2003 - that at the very least the worker on average industrial earnings was liable for tax at no more than the standard rate, such a modestly-paid worker was dragged back up into the top rate of tax last year, and has remained there for the second year running".

"The Government's failure to adjust tax bands as promised has been paralleled by its failure to ensure adequate increases in tax credits for the benefit of all taxpayers. The result is that even those earning no more than the statutory national minimum wage have remained in the tax net, despite a promise by this Coalition Government over four years ago to completely free all such low-paid workers from any income tax tax burden by 2002".

"Clearly, there remains much unfinished business in respect of taxation commitments under the current agreement", Mr. O'Riordan concluded.





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