LIVING’S SHOCK...
pitality businesses are in the front line of energy inflation.
“Hotels, restaurants and other tourism businesses are, by their nature, heavy users of energy from kitchens and laundry through to light and heat.
“These businesses have little discretion to lower their energy consumption and certainly don’t have the luxury of using utilities during off peak times.”
Retail Excellence, Ireland’s largest representative body for the industry gave the Budget a guarded welcome.
However, it warned the jury remains out if the measures announced would be enough to save hundreds of firms from liquidation before the end of the year.
Its managing director Duncan Graham said: “We welcome the fact there has been an intervention in the energy crisis with targeted supports and that many people will have more money in their pockets to spend.
Criteria
“But we will have to examine the qualifying criteria for the energy support scheme in more detail.
“It remains to be seen whether this will be sufficient for many businesses who have been crippled by rising costs this year.”
The Director of the Small Firms Association welcomed the establishment of the Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme.
Sven Spollen-Behrens said: “We will engage with Government to support the administration of this scheme, which will benefit, retail, wholesalers, suppliers, caterers, office-based businesses and the experience economy to mitigate the impact of rising energy costs.”
However, he added the overall package yesterday fell short.
Mr Sven Spollen-Behrens added: “The cost of doing business is a battle on many fronts.
“Today’s announcements don’t go far enough for small businesses facing increasing labour costs, insurance, commodity prices and rent pressures.
“These are hugely worrying times for small business, and for many, 2023 is going to be a difficult year,” he said.
IF you didn’t know better you’d think an election was around the corner. Maybe there is.
The Budget was a blatant vote-grabbing exercise aimed at stealing Sinn Fein’s lunch.
But it also served to show just how starved we’ve been for decades of realistic investment in everything from housing to health.
The fact the Coalition can suddenly produce billions isn’t just down to the huge tax contribution of the multi-nationals but to the ability of the main parties to find the cash when their survival depends on.
They had to push the boat out as if World Cup gold-medallists Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy were on the oars.
It’s incomprehensible how they found billions for one-offs and already-minted sectors of society but for significant increases for social welfare recipients and low income families, they fail to deliver.
Offering €12 a week on social welfare payments simply does not cut the mustard in the face of soaring inflation and the inevitable greed of price gougers. This could have been a positive headline-hogging moment – but it’ll turn out to be the most disappointing aspect of the Budget.
It also goes to show that years in the Ivory Tower of Dail Eireann, on generous salaries and conditions, resulted in the political elites becoming divorced from life’s realities.
On the huge investment in health, housing and education, the same doubts arise.
Apparently there were 15, 000 new entrants into the health sector last year. Where are they? Not at the coal face in the wards and A&Es where they’re needed.
There’s very little in the Budget to persuade any young person to go into teaching.
As for recruiting 800 extra gardai, the issue isn’t about attracting more young people to the service but stopping the ones we have from leaving. Budget 2023 could have been seismic for Irish society – instead we just got a glimpse of what could have been.