Pringle: Budget 2024 ‘underwhelming’, as once-off payments fail to address cost-of-living crisis

By Thomas Pringle
Updated: 11th October 2023

Independent TD for Donegal, Thomas Pringle, called Budget 2024 “underwhelming and nonsensical”, saying Government’s lump-sum payments do nothing to help people who are struggling in the cost-of-living crisis.

Addressing the Dáil on Tuesday evening, Deputy Pringle also cited his concerns with Budget 2024 decisions across a number of areas, including health and mental health, disability supports and services, housing, and children.

Deputy Pringle said: “You’d be forgiven for confusing last year’s budget with this year’s, it is just as underwhelming and nonsensical. Against almost every organisation’s advice and budget submissions, you have again introduced once-off, lump-sum payments that do nothing to help with the ongoing cost of living crisis and the high rate of inflation.

“Energy credits are again being thrown out to those who don’t need it which is, in my view, frankly a particularly stupid way to spend €1.6 million or 13% of the total cost-of-living expenditure,” he said.

From his remarks:

Health and mental health

The deputy said: “The published budget document doesn’t even allocate mental health its own section, while the likes of ‘Covid-19’ and ‘Met Eireann’ both get their own section within the document. I think that demonstrates just how troubling this Government’s priorities are.

“There has been a serious decline of the mental health budget in Ireland from 13% of the overall health budget in 1984, to just 5.1% in 2023. This is despite a rise in those experiencing mental health difficulties to around 40% in Ireland and the fact that Ireland’s prevalence rates of mental health difficulties are relatively high in comparison to international estimates,” he said.

Disability

Deputy Pringle said: “Our disabled community has been completely let down by this budget. To celebrate the creation of a national savings account, while there are hundreds and thousands of disabled children and adults who cannot access basic support, services and equipment, is an insult.

“A €12 increase is sorely inadequate. We need at least a €50 weekly, ongoing cost of disability payment, on top of the existing allowance.

“It is very hard to understand why the Minster has decided not to continue the cost of disability payment, acknowledged and introduced for the first time in Budget 2023 at €500, and I know DPOs are feeling particularly let down by this. I am also disappointed that the income threshold for those on Disability Allowance was not increased.

“The Minister raised the income threshold for carers but I ask, why does it exist at all? Carers are providing our state with a crucial service, not to mention the financial burden they are removing from the State,” he said.

Economy

Deputy Pringle said: “Many areas within this budget don’t seem well thought out at all. After reading through the changes in take-home pay, I can’t fathom how someone on €25,000 a year will see an increase of €5 a week, while someone on €100,000 a year will see an increase of €17 a week.

“I was also extremely disappointed to see no new spending in the Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport & Media for next year. Tá sé ríthábhachtach go n-aithnímid an tábhacht a bhaineann lenár gceantair Ghaeltachta chun ár n-oidhreacht áisiúnta a choinneáil. Caithfimid na Gaeltachtaí a chosaint agus ligint dóibh fás agus forbairt. Is píosaí ríthábhachtacha dár gcultúr iad.”

He said: “We need to protect our Gaeltachts and enable them to thrive and grow.”

Housing

Deputy Pringle said: “Housing for All has failed. Since publishing the strategy in September 2021, homelessness in the north-west region has increased by a massive 80.2%.”

The deputy said: “We need to implement emergency legislation to cap rent prices and reinstate the eviction ban and we also mustn’t delay in allocating the €210 million necessary to ensure 100% redress for mica-affected homeowners as well.

“Regarding rental shortages, in Donegal, 21% of families are renting and 14% of adults are living with their parents. There isn’t a shortage of properties in Donegal. The properties exist but they are being used for Airbnb and holiday rentals. We need to incentivise landlords to switch existing short-term to long-term letting because that is vitally important and it will become even more important as mica redress gets underway and people need somewhere to live while their house is being repaired.”

Children

Deputy Pringle said: “The State should be prioritising a universal, public-funded childcare programme. This should include a scheme similar to AIM in ECCE to allow for the accommodation of disabled children and children with complex care needs. We need to assist our most vulnerable in meaningful ways.”

The deputy said that more than 671,000 people are living in poverty in Ireland, including 188,602 children. Last year 539 people sought support from the North West Simon Community alone, including 244 children, he said.

Deputy Pringle said: “As Children’s Rights Alliance state, addressing the socio-economic rights of children is not a charitable process. And it is not an opportunity for government to pat themselves on the back and say, ‘Job well done’. It is a basic obligation.

“At the beginning of this year, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child urged the Irish Government to raise social welfare rates to reflect the cost of living as a key means by which to ensure children have access to an adequate standard of living, and it urged Ireland to address the root causes of homelessness.

“This Government and this budget has failed to do this, while at the same time trying to make us believe that a slight reduction in childcare costs and a measly weekly increase in qualified child rates will create a global haven for children in this country.

“Where is the universal childcare? Where is the security of a home to call their own? This country is a haven for the rich, not the children. And that’s what this budget shows,” he said.