The 2011 Irish Budget refers to the delivery of a

government budget A government budget is a document prepared by the government and/or other political entity presenting its anticipated tax revenues (Inheritance tax, income tax, corporation tax, import taxes) and proposed spending/expenditure (Healthcare, Educa ...

by the

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The governm ...

on 7 December 2010. It was also the fourth and final overall budget to be delivered by

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

's Brian Lenihan as

Minister for Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...

. The budget for 2011 occurred in the context of a major recession, which followed the

Irish financial crisis The post-2008 Irish economic downturn in the Republic of Ireland, coincided with a series of banking scandals, followed the 1990s and 2000s Celtic Tiger period of rapid real economic growth fuelled by foreign direct investment, a subsequent pr ...

. The budget was described as the most draconian budget in the history of the State, with €6bn worth of savings.

Main points

This is a list of the main points contained in the 2011 Budget. *No reduction in state pension. *€10 reduction in Child Benefit rates. *€8 cut for social welfare, jobseekers payments. *4c on petrol, 2c on diesel from midnight. *Revised air travel tax of €3 from March 2011. *€40 payment for fuel allowance recipients. *New minimum wage not in tax net. *Public service pay will not be cut *Public sector salary capped at €250k *Public service pensions over €12k cut 4% *Taoiseach salary cut by €14k; ministers by €10k *Next President's salary to be capped at €250,000 *Employee PRSI/health levy pension relief gone *Income/health levies to be replaced by single universal social charge. Rates on the charge will be 0% below €4,004 a year, 2% up to €10,036, 4% from €10,036 to €16,016 and 7% above this level *Pension contributions subject to PRSI and Universal Social Charge *Employee PRSI contribution ceiling removed *Increase in the PRSI rate for the self-employed, higher earning public servants and office holders *1% tax on residential transactions up to €1m; 2% over €1m *All stamp duty exemptions abolished *Car scrappage extended for six months *No change to Ireland's corporation rate *Value of tax bands and credits to be reduced by 10% *DIRT increased by 2% *Online betting will be subject to the same betting duty as in bookie shops *Carer's Allowance for those under 66 to be cut by €8 to €212 a week *Disability Allowance being cut by €8 to €186 a week *Business Expansion Scheme to be revamped *15,000 activation places for unemployed *Third-level student charges are to rise by €500 to €2000 *Student grants are to be cut by 4% *New passport fees for over 65s

References

External links

Irish Government Budget 2011 website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Irish Budget, 2011 2010 in Irish politics 2011 in Irish politics

Budget A budget is a calculation play, usually but not always financial, for a defined period, often one year or a month. A budget may include anticipated sales volumes and revenues, resource quantities including time, costs and expenses, environmenta ...

2011 government budgets 30th Dáil 11