Budget 2011 ideas

MrDarcy

RichardAnd wrote: »

I agree with the above poster though, OAPs will not be touched.

I have a feeling that they will be hit and rightly so at this stage probably. I argued against this in the past, but at this stage everyone is feeling serious pain and maybe it's about time that the pension congregation start to shoulder some of the heavy burden of adjustment like the rest of us.

They are mortgage free, are fairly well looked after in fairness, with free travel, medical cards and majorative contributions made by the state towards their phone, ESB, and gas costs.

dean21

Put a special tax on anybody who has worked in a bank in the last 10 years and who got a bonus for getting Irish people in to as much debt as possible.

dvpower

Aard wrote: »

What kinds of loopholes are these? (Genuine question)

There were/are a load of tax incentive schemes where a person could reduce their income tax by investing money in various urban renewal schemes and business expansion schemes.

There were other loopholes where a person who would be liable to capital gains tax could reduce the liability by transferring an asset to their spouse.

People could also put large sums of money tax free into pension funds.

Not to mention people becoming non resident on selling businesses to avoid tax.

Thats just the simple ones. Tax advisors have long been trawling the tax code to devise new and interesting ways of reducing the tax bills of the clients.


Not that any of this is necessarily illegal, but I think that the proposal to set a floor limit that you can't reduce your tax below, is a good one.

dvpower

dean21 wrote: »

Put a special tax on anybody who has worked in a bank in the last 10 years and who got a bonus for getting Irish people in to as much debt as possible.

A special tax on Bank Assistants who sold loan products?

Welease

dean21 wrote: »

Put a special tax on anybody who has worked in a bank in the last 10 years and who got a bonus for getting Irish people in to as much debt as possible.

I assume you would also be in favour of a special tax for the PS who didn't regulate the financial sector as they were paid to do, made rediculous planning decisions which allowed ghost estates to be build everywhere, let rediculous waste of tax receipts in organisations like FAS and the HSE go unchecked etc etc etc..?

There's more than one reason this country is a joke..

supremenovice

This thread should be renamed "Budget 2011 - Shoot down the idea from the previous poster".:rolleyes:

In all seriousness, I feel sympathy for whoever the Minister for Finance is in December. We all know there are at least €3 billion getting cut but whatever cuts he announces are going to be ripped to shreds by some section of society, just like most ideas on this thread are shot down. Doesnt matter what party is in government, they still would have to find the cash and piss a lot of people off along the way.
Nobody is willing to take a hit.

rightwingdub

supremenovice wrote: »

This thread should be renamed "Budget 2011 - Shoot down the idea from the previous poster".:rolleyes:

In all seriousness, I feel sympathy for whoever the Minister for Finance is in December. We all know there are at least €3 billion getting cut but whatever cuts he announces are going to be ripped to shreds by some section of society, just like most ideas on this thread are shot down. Doesnt matter what party is in government, they still would have to find the cash and piss a lot of people off along the way.
Nobody is willing to take a hit.

Irish people are a bunch of selfish ME feiners, a lot of people have the attitude of "I accept the need for cutbacks as long as it doesn't affect me", for the last 2 years I've supported a benevolent dictatorship in the form of the IMF to put manners on us selfish, simple minded paddies.

Yes the OAP should be cut big bloody deal it needs to be cut to €190 per week, they'll survive, OAPS don't have to worry about mortgages, they get subsidized gas and electricty bills, free TV licenses etc.

ardmacha

I assume you would also be in favour of a special tax for the PS who didn't regulate the financial sector as they were paid to do, made rediculous planning decisions which allowed ghost estates to be build everywhere, let rediculous waste of tax receipts in organisations like FAS and the HSE go unchecked etc etc etc..?

These organisations were run in accordance with government policy. Government didn't want regulation of the financial sector, they did want lots of houses built.

The proper object of punitive taxes are those who voted for the government, which in a democracy with secret ballot is everyone.

Uriel.

MrDarcy wrote: »

I have a feeling that they will be hit and rightly so at this stage probably. I argued against this in the past, but at this stage everyone is feeling serious pain and maybe it's about time that the pension congregation start to shoulder some of the heavy burden of adjustment like the rest of us.

They are mortgage free, are fairly well looked after in fairness, with free travel, medical cards and majorative contributions made by the state towards their phone, ESB, and gas costs.

After the last episode with the OAPs I find it hard to believe that they will be touched. Once bitten twice shy and all.

I do worry in some cases though if energy prices keep going up, some OAPs on the minimum allowance may struggle (I know they do get some allowances (fuel/ESB credits) but the price of Gas is mad I, I struggle with my bill at times and I minimize it's usage, can't see how OAPs can keep payments for that up, especially as you would imagine that their consumption would be higher (needing heating on for longer etc...).

Welease

ardmacha wrote: »

These organisations were run in accordance with government policy. Government didn't want regulation of the financial sector, they did want lots of houses built.

The proper object of punitive taxes are those who voted for the government, which in a democracy with secret ballot is everyone.

And the guy sitting at the cash desk in the bank was just following the official policies at his bank (his employer).. If the previous poster (Dean21) believes they should all be held accountable with a tax premium because of the failings in policy of their employers, then why shouldn't the same apply to the PS worker who implemented the policies of their employer?

Bersouth

Welease wrote: »

And the guy sitting at the cash desk in the bank was just following the official policies at his bank (his employer).. If the previous poster (Dean21) believes they should all be held accountable with a 10% tax premium because of the failings in policy of their employers, then why shouldn't the same apply to the PS worker who implemented the policies of their employer?

Nuremberg Defence only carrying out orders....

rpurfield

i dont normally post in here im just cruising through a few different forums for reading but i want to put in my own two cent worth on this.

in the ideal world what id love to happen is the TD's take a flat salary of what they earn now and pay everything they get on expenses now out of that flat rate.either that or cut their wage down to something like 40k a year for the junior most TD working up to something more but still a lot less than the taoiseach gets now.having said that i know it will never happen they just wouldnt vote for it.all these people doing the same job twice in the hse should be moved on too and as was said before more aggressive stance on social welfare fraud.

i see a lot of people saying tax this or that,thats all very well but it will get to the stage where people are taxed so much they cant afford mortgages etc. let alone going out spending a few bob keeping retail going.enda kenny has a point about scrapping the seanad too either that or we could cut the number of TD's and i think the outsourcing idea that was mentioned before for county councils is a good one.

Bersouth

rpurfield wrote: »

i dont normally post in here im just cruising through a few different forums for reading but i want to put in my own two cent worth on this.

in the ideal world what id love to happen is the TD's take a flat salary of what they earn now and pay everything they get on expenses now out of that flat rate.either that or cut their wage down to something like 40k a year for the junior most TD working up to something more but still a lot less than the taoiseach gets now.having said that i know it will never happen they just wouldnt vote for it.all these people doing the same job twice in the hse should be moved on too and as was said before more aggressive stance on social welfare fraud.

i see a lot of people saying tax this or that,thats all very well but it will get to the stage where people are taxed so much they cant afford mortgages etc. let alone going out spending a few bob keeping retail going.enda kenny has a point about scrapping the seanad too either that or we could cut the number of TD's and i think the outsourcing idea that was mentioned before for county councils is a good one.

Why stop at the TD's, the college people work a shorter year and get a far greater salary!!

eaglej13

bryaner wrote: »

The IMF will start at the top.

bring in the imf, population 4 million, 4 million not acting, banking crisis, nobody jailed, only in ireland

eaglej13

just after looking through thye posts, it's mad, tax this get rid of this etc etc
the only trhing we need to get rid of is all the political parties here, then we need to jail all the people responsible for this and take the money back. how much money do we as a country pay to pensions for people at the top, how much was robbed. ex fas employ's going on holidays with his wife 9 times in one year. its the tip of the iceberg. people of ireland stand up , france goes mad, greece goes mad, iceland goes mad. ireland---- 1 guy in a cement truck, good on him, whats the story with the rest of the population

dan_d

Looks like the intention is for everyone to pay one way or another..

http://news.eircom.net/breakingnews/18780806/?view=Standard

Necessary, but sickening.I'd rather just know the whole story and get on with it at this stage - we've been listening to a serious amount of bulls*&t about the economy for the last 2 years and I, for one, am totally fed up at this stage.

changes

eaglej13 wrote: »

people of ireland stand up , france goes mad, greece goes mad, iceland goes mad. ireland---- 1 guy in a cement truck, good on him, whats the story with the rest of the population

Yeah i had to laugh at this too, one man in a truck thats all we can muster.
And we had someone on vinnie brown raving mad because he might have caused a garda to break into a trott to get out of the way.

deelite

Here are my ideas (probably not logical to some).

1. Child Benefit - Marry the child benefit with school attendance (home school children - not sure about them yet). If the child stays in school and completes their final exam they should receive an extra bonus - say 500 euro.

If they cut the child benefit - I feel that all should receive free medical, prescriptions, school books.

2. Housing - there's so many empty council houses at the moment - I strongly feel that these should be offered to people receiving Rental Allowance (if they reject 3 council houses - then it's goodbye to Rental Allowance).

3. Cigs. Bring the price of smokes down so smokers will go back to buying them in the local shop rather than on the black market.

4. Property Tax - just a question rather than a point - will the Councils have to pay this tax.

There's just a few quick ideas - probably not been thought out properly.

Danno

Increasing fuel taxes should not happen as it only serves to increase the price of everything. People seem to forget that everything in this country moves on the back of a lorry. In fact, I propose that we reverse the "Carbon Tax" in order to keep our fuel cheap.

A simple tax system needs to be devised. Employers PRSI should be abolished, all PRSI, PAYE and income levies should be amalgamated in to a single tax.

Childrens Allowance should be abolished with the funds diverted into FIS and Social Welfare.

Abolish rent allowance as it is keeping asking prices artificially high.

All politicians should have their wages slashed to around 35k per year. Performance bonuses should be based on a yearly vote day whereby everybody rates the government and the result determines their bonus pay.

In the public service, we need to have a big look at who is doing what job - we need to cut numbers in administration - big cuts.

cleremy jarkson

Danno wrote: »

A simple tax system needs to be devised. Employers PRSI should be abolished, all PRSI, PAYE and income levies should be amalgamated in to a single tax.

This is something I think most people would like to see. If all these different levies were amalgamated into the two simple income tax bands, it would make it easier for families to calculate and prepare their finances for the future (eg. they could work out how much of their present income they would need to save to buffer them against a 5 % rise in the higher rate, for example).

i_love_toast

At the last budget i heard on the radio a top doctor was saying something like half a billion could be saved on switching all name brand medicines used in hospitals to other generic ones which have the exact same effect. Obviously staff training would be required but it seems like easy savings.

i_love_toast

deelite wrote: »

Here are my ideas (probably not logical to some).

1. Child Benefit - Marry the child benefit with school attendance (home school children - not sure about them yet). If the child stays in school and completes their final exam they should receive an extra bonus - say 500 euro.

yeah i agree. child support should be given on a basis of how well the parent is actually doing. Full attendance at schools, decent grades and no trouble with the law. Otherwise the child benefit should be cut.

Aard

Such changes in Child Benefit would be costly to administrate. Better off just giving the money straight to the schools so that kids aren't in prefabs all year round.

WalterMitty

over the four years public sector pay should be reduced to EU average for the job plus a premium for cost of living difference. Would save a few billion.

cleremy jarkson

http://www.finance.gov.ie/documents/publications/Taxation/Taxstats.pdf

Our tax rates are very low compared to what they were in the 20 year period of poor economic performance from 1973 -1993 but I never hear anyone discuss this.

Lapin

Denzil2222 wrote: »

This is what i think minister lenihan should do in budget 2011, abolish dole for under 21s, half dole from 21st till 25th birthday, cut child benifit to €100 per child per month and stop it on childs 17th birthday, cut state pension by 6 percent, abolish free tv licence and phone line rental for oaps and others, change medical card limits for over 70s to €450 per week for a single person and €900 for married couple, €10 levy on all new mobile phones, €2 on sim cards, plastic bag tax up to 50 cent per bag, extra €2 on 20 cigs, 51 percent tax rate for people earning over 300k, income levys up to 3, 6, and 9 percent.

You have obviously put a lot of thought into this.

So tell us - How much will your proposals actually save or make for the vested interests who run and own this great little nation ?

deelite

Aard wrote: »

Such changes in Child Benefit would be costly to administrate. Better off just giving the money straight to the schools so that kids aren't in prefabs all year round.

I'm not exactly sure if this would cost any money to administrate (but probably would knowing how joined up thinking is never implemented...:rolleyes:). I was thinking along the lines that at the moment schools are obligated to inform the ed. dept if a child has missed 20 days in the school year - so under my logic - it shouldn 't be exactly rocket science to bring this in.

I'm also thinking that if a parent is a problem or has a child with a problem - they'd be more inclined to kick the child to school if they thought they'd be financially better off in doing so.

johnboy_123

Dob74 wrote: »

The economy would come to complete stop if you wanted to abolish tax credits.
It puts about 70 euro a week into the hand of everyone employed.
Income tax only accounts for 35% of the tax take. Vat would be affected if you raise income tax, everyone would stop spending.

Everyday you listen "experts" form the big accounting firms advocating higher tax for low paid workers. Thats because the higher you get paid the more tax breaks you can take advantage of. And of course they are clients of the big accounting firms where these "experts" work.

I am sick of listening to Ivan Yeats and co wanting to raise taxes on the lower paid.
It is a self defeating exercise, the price of everything in this country is expensive, insurance. professional fees, Real Estate should be looked at first before attacking the average worker.

Actually I aggree with cutting out all tax credits and instead have a more equated tax system.

Lower the minimum tax bracket to include everyone earning and bring in two other higher tax brackets for over 100k and over 250k. Then cut Min wage and social welfare.

I think that if we are paying just tax rates everyone knows where they stand. Not only this but some people currently are not as clued in as others. So some are benefiting from the above credits whilst others are totally oblivious. For example I know people who didnt realise they could claim for the bin collection.

Also Politicians, should have their wage slashed by at least 25% all expenses vouched and scrutinised. All perks discontinued ie cars etc and the number of TDs cut by 25%, and Seanad abolished. Also anyone not of the age of retirement age 67 should not be allowed to recieve their pension. Also people getting a double pension should be stopped aswell. This wont save loads but its cutting by example and will make it easier for poor Ted on the scratch who will be cut to feck in the budget

This would also lead to less administration. No need for the p.s brainiaches to be calculating ah bin exemption, Living away from home exemption ... it would save millions

lalababa

What would be the fair adjustments that Brian can make this Dec? What would be the fair adjustments that Brian could make if there was no Croke park deal? Is there a way of 'getting around' this deal? What would the adjustments be by the IMF, fair or otherwise? I think the answer is simple -cut the bollocks out of the dole hahahahahahhahahah:D ..no seriously

robtri

if i had a say in the matter...

1. Remove motor tax, pay an extra 10c at the pumps on diesel and petrol.. re deploy motor tax staff or redunacies

2. Cut Dole by 30%..

3. All minister pay cut by 30%.

4. All ministers pensions only payable at retirement age.

5. After 1 year as serving Taoiseach, the free car, body gaurd, chauffer gone.

6. All PS workers pay cut 20%

7. Raise income levy by 1%

8. Agree Fixed rate contracts... none of this estimate crap... for all major projects over 500,000euro

9. Remove all PS pay for sitting on quangos and other supplementry boards, its their job ffs

10. property tax on second homes of €1000 a year

11. Lower company tax by 1%

12. Housing, after two refusals of a coucil house, all rent payments to be stopped.

13. All PS expenses to be vouched and audited by independat third party auditor, all discrenpancies to be paid back by the employee

14. Sell RTE....