Ryan: Keep paying cost of living cash after end of Feb
Minister says use €2bn tax surplus
EAMON Ryan is in favour of continuing cost-of-living cash supports past and paying for them out of a €2billion surplus tax fund.
The Energy Minister has also backed a return of another cost of living package next winter, saying we need to “keep enough money in the locker” for it.
Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys came to Cabinet this week with news that the Social Insurance Fund, that taxpayers pay into, is €2billion the black for 2022.
The Green Party chief and Energy Minister who is one of the three leaders of the coalition government, was asked by the Irish Mirror if this extra cash should be used to extend cost of living supports into spring and summer.
Mr Ryan said: “Yes, there are about 12 different elements to the cost of living measures, there is new windfall tax revenue coming, the State has funds in a variety of ways. So I wouldn’t rule out any one source of funds being used, it’s the balance that we have to get right.”
The European Central Bank is set to hike interest rates again today adding hundreds or thousands of euro to an annual household budget.
The Energy Minister was asked if this would have an impact on the government’s thinking when it comes to winding down the cost of living supports package.
Mr Ryan said: “It won’t have a cliff edge, they won’t all end at the end of February. We do have to wind down from them, same way we did with Covid, but the timing of that will depend on a deep analysis in terms of, what’s happening with inflation as well as energy prices.
“Part of the balance would be keeping enough money in the locker that come the next budget, in October if interest rates have continued to rise, or energy prices haven’t come down, then we’ve the wherewithal to go to do what we did in last year’s budget, go big and go really direct with the payments to the
households.”