More than 70,000 16-year-olds would get a €100 voucher to spend on arts and culture events under a Budget 2027 proposal.
It is understood that Minister for Culture Patrick O’Donovan hopes to introduce the measure via the budget and extend it to 17-year-olds in Budget 2028.
Teenagers would have the freedom to choose how they spend the voucher, which could go towards the cost of a ticket for a concert or be spent in smaller increments on things like a cinema trip.
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The proposal, which was first reported by the Sunday Independent, would cost an estimated €7.5 million in its first year.
In advance of the 2024 general election, Fine Gael suggested introducing a so-called “culture card” worth €300 for 16- and 17-year-olds “to access theatre, music, and art events, making cultural experiences more accessible for young people”. Examining the introduction of such a card was then included in the programme for government.
It comes as Ministers prepare to spend the next two weeks negotiating the budget. An enhanced childcare subsidy, changes to income tax, a cost of disability payment, more access to third-level grants and some form of fuel supports have already been flagged by Ministers.
On Saturday, Minister for Finance Simon Harris said he has limited scope to reduce tax on heating oil. And so “the benefit of a reduction in VAT would be very limited for people in relation to home-heating oil and the cost would be very significant”.
Harris also ruled out any move to abolish stamp duty for first-time homebuyers in the budget.
Speaking after the Ecofin [The Economic and Financial Affairs Council] meeting of EU finance ministers at Dublin Castle on Saturday, Harris said: “I’m not intending to bring forward proposals in relation to stamp duty and that’s not news to colleagues across the Coalition.”
He said his department was against any change in the area, believing it “is not a good idea”, and that while there will be measures intended to address the ongoing housing crisis, they will, he said, be focused on boosting supply.
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Meanwhile, the Department of Housing still believes that expanding the Help to Buy scheme is up for discussion in the budget. It is understood that Minister for Housing James Browne wants to increase the refund to €50,000. Under the existing scheme, first-time buyers buying a new home worth under €500,000 can get 10 per cent of the property’s purchase price or €30,000 back in a tax refund. Browne wants to increase this to €50,000. The department is also seeking an increase to the renters’ tax credit.
Harris has cautioned about speculating on whether the measure could happen, citing a possible “destabilising effect on the housing market”.