Budget framed ‘with eye to the election rather than eye to the future’

Responding to Budget 2025, Unite, which represents workers throughout the economy, warned that today’s package of election giveaways will not lay the foundations for sustainable wage-led growth.

While any measures to alleviate immediate cost-of-living pressures will be welcomed, Unite said that, by focusing on short-term subsidies rather than long-term investment in the public provision of services, and on cutting inheritance tax rather than taxing wealth, the coalition has missed an opportunity to transform the economy.

The union also criticised the decision to again subsidise house purchases and rents – which could fuel further price rises – rather than implementing an ambitious publicly-delivered housing programme.

Commenting, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said:

“With unprecedented funds at its disposal, the government has made the wrong choices with an eye to the election rather than an eye to the future.

“They had the chance to boost workers’ living standards by investing in public delivery of vital services, from truly affordable housing to childcare.

“And they had a chance to implement a real wealth tax, at a time when the richest 10% own almost as much wealth as everyone else – but instead they chose to give the wealthiest a handout by cutting inheritance tax”.

Unite stressed that the most effective way to ensure sustainable wage-led growth is to vindicate workers’ right to collective bargaining. 

The union’s Irish Secretary Susan Fitzgerald said:

“Workers are only now emerging from years of austerity followed by Covid and an unprecedented cost-of-living crisis.  Our slice of the economic pie has fallen continuously over the past two decades.

“Tax cuts and one-off payments are no substitute for enabling workers to collectively drive real wage increases.

“We cannot accept a raincheck on workers’ rights”.