{"id":64260,"date":"2025-10-07T01:31:18","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T01:31:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/64260\/"},"modified":"2025-10-07T01:31:18","modified_gmt":"2025-10-07T01:31:18","slug":"what-people-want-from-budget-2026-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/64260\/","title":{"rendered":"What people want from Budget 2026 \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

What people want from the budget<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Renter: \u2018Unless I win the lotto, there\u2019s absolutely no way I will be able to buy a house\u2019<\/p>\n

Jane Cuppage (38) is an insurance broker who rents<\/a> a one-bedroom apartment in D\u00fan Laoghaire for \u20ac1,800 a month. <\/p>\n

It took her almost 18 months to find somewhere to rent when she moved back from London.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was difficult two and a half years ago, and it\u2019s even more difficult now,\u201d she says of the hunt for a rental property<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnless I win money on the lottery, there\u2019s absolutely no way in the current climate that I will be able to buy a house. If it continues on this way, I\u2019m going to be a lifetime renter,\u201d Cuppage says. <\/p>\n

Despite a recent pay rise, she says at least half of her salary, if not more, goes on her rent. <\/p>\n

She has had to reduce her pension contributions to afford this, and is unable to save enough for a deposit on a home.<\/p>\n

On top of high rental costs, she believes there is a \u201ctax on single people\u201d which makes the cost of living even more expensive.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything from your rent, where you can live, trying to get a mortgage, and even buying food \u2013 all the meal deals are for two people minimum,\u201d Cuppage says.<\/p>\n

One State scheme which could have helped reduce her monthly rental payments and make saving for a mortgage more achievable was the Cost Rental scheme.<\/p>\n

This scheme offers rented accommodation at 25 per cent below market rent to people with a net household income of \u20ac66,000 or below in Dublin or \u20ac59,000 or below in the rest of the country.<\/p>\n

However, when Cuppage applied to one of these housing schemes, she was told her wage was too low to pay their rent of \u20ac1,300.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t understand, it was cheaper than the rent I\u2019m paying to a private landlord now, but they said my net wage was too low [to afford it].<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m paying about \u20ac550 more a month now just on my rent, not even on my bills, and you\u2019re telling me that I don\u2019t qualify because I wouldn\u2019t be able to pay my rent every month? It\u2019s insane,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

@theirishtimesnews<\/a> <\/p>\n

Jane Cuppage (38) is an insurance broker who rents a one-bedroom apartment in D\u00fan Laoghaire for \u20ac1,800 a month. It took her almost 18 months to find somewhere to rent when she moved back from London. This is what she wants to see from Budget 2026. Click the link in our bio for more and let us know what you’d like to see in the comments #budget2026 #budget #ireland #irish #dublin #dunlaoghaire<\/p>\n

\u266c original sound – The Irish Times<\/a> <\/p>\n

She also feels locked out of the affordable purchase scheme, where local authorities sell homes below market value and take a share in the ownership, because she cannot save for a deposit while paying her high rent.<\/p>\n

\u201cI earn too much to apply for social housing, so I\u2019m completely pushed into a position where I just have to live where I\u2019m living now and understand that I won\u2019t be able to save. Maybe I can try and find somewhere a little bit cheaper [to rent], but that would probably take me up to two years, because I just can\u2019t get viewings,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

She does not believe in the Government\u2019s strategy to lure back private investment in apartment building, and says Ireland does not have affordable rents or security of tenure to make lifelong renting a sustainable option. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe really sad thing about the current climate is that I\u2019m actually very fortunate to have somewhere to live and to be able to afford where I live \u2013 but that\u2019s also just not good enough,\u201d Cuppage says.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Niamh Towey<\/p>\n

Landlord: \u2018Landlords are part of the solution here to the rental crisis, but it\u2019s got to be fair on both sides\u2019<\/p>\n

\"BrendanBrendan Allen <\/p>\n

Brendan Allen is a former landlord and committee member of the Irish Property Owners\u2019 Association who recently left the property market because of what he calls the unfair treatment of smaller landlords.<\/p>\n

\u201cLandlords are part of the solution to the rental crisis, but it\u2019s got to be fair on both sides,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

Many landlords with large mortgages are being left out of pocket because they cannot raise their rents by more than 2 per cent when their interest rates rise, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe should have the ability to increase the rent between tenancies. I\u2019d like to see that and perhaps put it up [the rent rise cap] to 4 per cent where it originally started, which would make a bit more sense for landlords,\u201d Mr Allen says.<\/p>\n

Similarly if a tenant goes into rent arrears it can be quite a lengthy process to have the issue resolved through the Residential Tenancies Board, during which time they are not receiving any rental income to cover their mortgage, Mr Allen says.<\/p>\n

Landlords also do not receive the same level of tax relief as a normal business owner would, which Mr Allen says is \u201cgrossly unfair and unreasonable\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cRental income is not treated the same as any other trading business. So the amount of deductions that you can set off against your rental income as a tax bill deduction is quite reduced,\u201d Mr Allen, who runs LandlordTaxReturns.ie, says.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of the situations I find is that many, many landlords end up in a cash flow deficit,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The frequency of changes to rent regulations over the last number of years has also created difficulty for landlords, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all want good quality landlords out there, but the regulations are changing quite often. In addition to that, they\u2019re very complex, particularly with regard to notice periods. There\u2019s also all the necessary compliance stuff that landlords need to know that takes time \u2013 but you cannot get a tax deduction for acquiring that information. That\u2019s the unfairness in this current regime,\u201d Mr Allen says. <\/p>\n

Further changes to rent controls due to come into effect in March 2026, such as smaller landlords only being able to terminate a tenancy in under six years in limited circumstances, are particularly difficult, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cLandlords are leaving, particularly with these new proposals,\u201d Mr Allen says.<\/p>\n

He would like to see Budget 2026 make an effort to make the rental market fairer on landlord.<\/p>\n

\u201c If you\u2019re in a situation where you can\u2019t recover it [your investment], why would you want to stay in that market?\u201d Mr Allen says.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Niamh Towey<\/p>\n

Teacher: \u2018Teachers can\u2019t afford to live here, they\u2019re choosing to move back to wherever they\u2019re from\u2019<\/p>\n

\"Ann-MarieAnn-Marie Murphy. Photograph: Alan Betson\/The Irish Times<\/p>\n

Ann-Marie Murphy took up a new habit before the last budget when she began to save money during the summer months to pay high winter utility bills.<\/p>\n

A secondary teacher for more than 10 years in Maynooth, Co Kildare, her pretax earning of about \u20ac70,000 no longer allows her to live as comfortably as she once could have, she says.<\/p>\n

She estimates both her gas and electricity bills to total about \u20ac400 on average per month for her family of five.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose little sweeteners they gave us last year, those supplementary payments, they really felt like a Band-Aid,\u201d she says, and hopes more will be done to address the costs.<\/p>\n

Last month, her electricity provider announced a 12 per cent increase.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels like there\u2019s no governance on it, that they\u2019re just free to do whatever they like,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

@theirishtimesnews<\/a> Channing Kehoe \u2013 a law and political science student \u2013 is the marketing and communications director for Trinity College Dublin\u2019s student\u2019s union. In July, Minister for Further and Higher Education James Lawless said that without a cost-of-living package in the budget, fees would have to increase again to \u20ac3,000 \u201cas things stand\u201d. His comments received huge backlash at the time and now, in advance of the budget, Kehoe says, the union is still strongly opposed to move. \u201cWith students already struggling through a severe cost of living and accommodation crisis, any fee increase is unacceptable. Click the link in our bio for more and let us know what you’d like to see in the Budget in the comments #budget2026 #budget #irish #ireland #trinitycollege<\/a> #trinity #tcd #dublin #students<\/a> \u266c original sound – The Irish Times<\/a> <\/p>\n

As a teacher, she hopes Budget 2026 will include funding for more special needs assistants and guidance counsellors, of which there are two in her school of 1,200 students.<\/p>\n

She also hopes to see the backlog of assessments of need addressed on Tuesday, saying \u201cso many\u201d undiagnosed students are left without required supports.<\/p>\n

Funding to hire more teachers overall to lower the pupil-teacher ratio is another must, she says. Her class is at maximum capacityand targeted measures to ease the teacher recruitment and retention crisis are vital.<\/p>\n

Three teachers left her school last year due to \u201csky-high\u201d rents and unaffordable housing in her area, she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cTeachers can\u2019t afford to live here, they\u2019re choosing to move back to wherever they\u2019re from,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Jack White<\/p>\n

Farmer: \u2018We\u2019re not just farmers, we\u2019re the country\u2019s rare food producers who feed the world\u2019<\/p>\n

\"IsaacIsaac Wheelock. Photograph: Patrick Browne\/The Irish Times <\/p>\n

Isaac Wheelock loves his job, but there\u2019s a problem. At 35, he is torn between passion and prudence, because tillage farming, his bread and butter and his preferred career, is no longer putting food on his own table. The irony is not lost on him.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best I can hope for is to break even for income in 2025 and that\u2019s because the cost of food production is simply not viable for the very people who produce it to feed themselves,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Wheelock, who farms on land he rents in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, says he is crippled by ongoing increases across all his input costs for tillage, including seed, fertilisers, chemicals, machinery, labour, fuel, insurance and land rental. <\/p>\n

\u201cThose input costs range from \u20ac600 to \u20ac1,000 per acre depending on the crops. The Government wants to grow tillage acreage up to 400,000 hectares by 2030, to meet climate targets, but at the same time, and because of all the costs involved, the sector is actually becoming smaller.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wheelock wants more assurances from Government in the budget that more efforts will be made to support tillage farmers, and that there will be a less restrictive regime around inheritance tax. <\/p>\n

\u201cParents leave a farm to their children in good faith, so that they too can make a living from that land and keep it in the family. But in order to pay inheritance tax, some farmers have to actually sell the land to meet that bill,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Siobhan Maguire<\/p>\n

Social welfare recipient: The tenant-in-situ scheme should be \u2018brought back and properly funded\u2019<\/p>\n

\"SarahSarah Corrigan. Photograph: Daragh Mc Sweeney\/Provision <\/p>\n

Sarah Corrigan lives in private rented-housing in Cork city with her three children aged 12 and under.<\/p>\n

The single mother works as a social care worker three days a week. \u201cI absolutely love it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Though the cost of childcare, fuel and groceries are concerns for her, her priority is housing. Her income is low enough that she qualifies for a reduced One Parent Family Payment (OPFP) but is too high to qualify for social housing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was on the housing list for about three years and was to be offered a house, but when the council looked at my income again recently it was too high. They took me off the housing list.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know my landlord wants to sell the house. It is very stressful and frustrating. I love my job, it\u2019s extra income and it\u2019s good for the kids to see me going out to work but I might have to give it up to get back on the list.\u201d <\/p>\n

She would like the tenant-in-situ scheme \u201cbrought back and properly funded\u201d.<\/p>\n

In Budget 2026 more affordable childcare along with increases in fuel allowance, the child support payment \u2013 a payment to welfare recipients in respect of children in their care \u2013 and the income disregards for the OPFP, would help her make ends meet. <\/p>\n

\u2013 Kitty Holland<\/p>\n

Craft distiller: Reduce the excise duty for distilleries; it\u2019s the third highest in the EU<\/p>\n

\"PádraicP\u00e1draic \u00d3 Griallais <\/p>\n

After a challenging year, the co-owner of Micil Distillery, P\u00e1draic \u00d3 Griallais (38), is calling for a reduction in excise duty for distilleries in Budget 2026.<\/p>\n

From Indreabh\u00e1n in Co Galway, P\u00e1draic and his brother Jim\u00edn, are sixth generation distillers, but the first to be doing it legally.<\/p>\n

Founded in 2016, the distillery is named after their great-great-great grandfather, Micil Mac Chearra, who began distilling illicit poit\u00edn in 1848. Now they produce gin, poit\u00edn, cream liqueur and whiskey.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have just put behind us some of the most challenging years we are ever going to face in Irish whiskey and spirits,\u201d P\u00e1draic said. <\/p>\n

Increased consumption during the pandemic led to an overstocking of whiskey by retailers. A \u201cpost-Covid hangover\u201d saw consumption decrease and orders fall, combined with increased input costs and US import tariffs.<\/p>\n

The biggest problem, P\u00e1draic said, is high electricity costs which have impacted production costs and some of their key inputs such as malted barley, glass bottles and labels.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I was to point to one thing, it would be that Ireland has the third highest excise duty in the EU,\u201d he says..<\/p>\n

Craft breweries benefit from a rebate on excise duty and P\u00e1draic would like so see a similar measure introduced for distilleries.<\/p>\n

A reduction in excise duty would have a \u201ccumulative effect\u201d, for Micil saving \u201ctens of thousands\u201d that would allow it to hire \u201cone or two more people\u201d and \u201cstrengthen the business domestically\u201d. <\/p>\n

P\u00e1draic also wants more funding for agencies such as Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland, and local enterprise offices, who \u201cdeserve an awful lot of praise and credit\u201d for helping small businesses access export markets.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Hugh Dooley<\/p>\n

Cafe owner: \u2018People think we whinge a lot but we\u2019re vocal because we\u2019re passionate about what we do\u2019<\/p>\n

\"EimearEimear Killian, co-owner of Buil\u00edn Blasta Caf\u00e9 & Bakery in Spiddal, Co Galway <\/p>\n

In south Connemara, in the heart of the Gaeltacht, a perfect storm is brewing for a local coffee shop and bakery. Buil\u00edn Blasta Caf\u00e9 & Bakery has made it through a tough summer, with tourism numbers down and rising running costs.<\/p>\n

Owners Heather Connolly and Eimear Killian, who make all their bakery offerings from scratch, employ 25 staff at the Spiddal business. They feel lucky to have a loyal local customer base, but say business costs, staffing levels, and margins remain an ongoing worry.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2025, we have sales costs, labour and staff costs, and overheads that include rent, rates, electricity, insurance and maintenance \u2013 and all of these have increased in price,\u201d says Killian. <\/p>\n

@theirishtimesnews<\/a> <\/p>\n

Denis Horan (63) is from Drogheda, Co Louth. In 2020, he was diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s disease and has moved back to Ireland after spending 35 years in New York as a result. Due to his health condition, he can\u2019t work. Click the link in our bio for more and let us know in the comments what you’d like to see from Budget 2026 #budget #budget2026 #drogheda #irish #ireland#Parkinsons<\/p>\n

\u266c original sound – The Irish Times<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u201cIn terms of food costs, chocolate has gone up by 157 per cent, coffee by 35 per cent, electricity 95 per cent, fruit and vegetables by 50 per cent, and poultry by 42 per cent. You don\u2019t want to pass those costs on to the customer either, but it is an ongoing struggle to meet this.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the budget, they want the reinstatement of a 9 per cent VAT rate, a minimum-wage increase that will not exceed inflation, and greater funding in the promotion of food tourism.<\/p>\n

\u201cSmall businesses like ours are the beating heart of communities, and more must be done to help us keep our doors open at a time when so many others have had to close,\u201d Killian says. <\/p>\n

\u2013 Siobhan Maguire<\/p>\n

\"ChanningChanning Kehoe <\/p>\n

Student: \u2018Education is a right and should be prioritised in the upcoming budget\u2019<\/p>\n

Channing Kehoe \u2013 a law and political science student \u2013 is the marketing and communications director for Trinity College Dublin\u2019s student\u2019s union. <\/p>\n

In July, Minister for Further and Higher Education James Lawless<\/a> said that without a cost-of-living package in the budget, fees would have to increase again to \u20ac3,000 \u201cas things stand\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n

His comments received huge backlash at the time and now, in advance of the budget, Kehoe says, the union is still strongly opposed to move. \u201cWith students already struggling through a severe cost of living and accommodation crisis, any fee increase is unacceptable. <\/p>\n

\u201cEducation is a right and should be prioritised in the upcoming budget.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead of increasing fees, she calls on the Government to \u201cinvest in students through properly funding higher education programs and taking steps towards tackling the accommodation crisis<\/p>\n

\u201cThe budget must aim to ease student hardship, not add to it,\u201d Kehoe says.<\/p>\n

\u2013 Rebecca Daly<\/p>\n

Older person with health difficulties: \u2018They talk about creating more housing but it has to be user-friendly housing\u2019<\/p>\n

\"DenisDenis Horan <\/p>\n

Denis Horan (63) is from Drogheda, Co Louth. In 2020, he was diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s disease and has moved back to Ireland after spending 35 years in New York as a result. Due to his health condition, he can\u2019t work.<\/p>\n

\u201cI worked since I was 17 but I had to retire. Because I retired early, I\u2019m on a fixed income now which makes it a little difficult,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Due to him retiring early, he doesn\u2019t qualify for many of the benefits of senior citizens, such as bus passes or a pension.<\/p>\n

Horan may soon have to leave his home and is considering a move abroad to the likes of Portugal or Spain, where it would be cheaper to live. Because of his specific needs, he is restricted where he can live. <\/p>\n

He would like to see supports in the budget for specialised housing that would fulfil his needs and the needs of other older people in Ireland, such as ground floor accommodation with no stairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey talk about creating more housing but it has to be user-friendly housing \u2013 for me, especially, and other people of a certain age. Taking a fall can be very dangerous. There are many places I could hurt myself. I don\u2019t expect [them] all to make a rubber room but you have to be careful,\u201d Horan says.<\/p>\n

What would also be helpful for him in Budget 2026 would be an allowance for healthcare, particularly in terms of helping him get access to exercise materials.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be interested in seeing some sort of help with exercise plans because exercise is a huge part of slowing Parkinson\u2019s and not everyone has access to gyms or health groups.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like most people, he\u2019s noticed an increase in the general cost of living, with healthy food \u2013 in particular \u2013 much more expensive. Eating well, he says, is a big part of keeping well with Parkinson\u2019s and he would like the Government to make it more affordable.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the medications working, it also helps if I have a good meal. Food is very important with Parkinson\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2013 Rebecca Daly<\/p>\n