Economics: 'Maith an buachaill!" said the teacher to the boy next to me. "That is such a better and nicer answer than everybody else's answer."

It was mid-December about 27 years ago and all of my classmates had been asked to make a wish list of what they wanted from Santa Claus. When it came to my turn, like the rest of the class so far I maxed out the parental credit card - metaphorically speaking - with a long list of the latest toys, gadgets and gizmos.

Then came the turn of my classmate: "This Christmas, I'd like to see an end to unemployment and peace in Northern Ireland". "Creep" we whispered to ourselves under our breath, but the teacher knew better.

Our selfish brat reaction might have been discouraging to the boy beside me so - knowing how rare concern for others can be - he gave the sentiments a stamp of approval.

Now over a quarter of a century later and with 8 weeks to budget day, I'm getting a feeling of deja vu. Three pre-budget submissions from the business community have made their way onto Brian Cowen's desk in the past week. When I say that Ibec, Isme and Chambers Ireland are engaging in their annual round of special interest pleading I am not being critical, just descriptive.

There is nothing wrong with special interest pleading, so long as it is in the interests of the common welfare, too.

I wasn't exactly being Mother Teresa 27 years ago with my Christmas wish list of a Scalextric, space suit and soda stream, but I wasn't doing anyone any harm either. The trouble is that budget submissions are different.

Sometimes, very significant tax reductions can stimulate economic activity in a way that increases the resources available to everybody, such as with the reduction of capital gains tax some years ago.

But, more often than not, budget submissions are a zero sum game, where someone's reduced tax burden is someone else's tax hike and someone's increased expenditure is someone else's cutback. When former finance minister Ruairi Quinn introduced a standardised format for such submissions, that prompted everyone to do what my teacher did 27 years ago - think about how what they were proposing would benefit the community.

That system having been done away with, it's up to the media to ask these questions.

There is merit in all three of the business group submissions. All identify the erosion of the Republic's cost competitiveness as the priority for the next Budget.

Ibec explicitly identifies this as the Government's responsibility and calls for the next budget to show "clear leadership" to fight inflation.

The budget should be countercyclical - that means moderating Government spending rather than ramping it up, given the buoyant economy at present - and should impose a 12-month freeze on administered charges to contain inflation.

The second benchmarking exercise should be more transparent and public sector pensions and other benefits should be quantified in assessing the private sector/public sector pay divide.

There should also, according to Ibec, be more competition in the provision of public services and all three organisations make the usual worthy call for greater efficiency in infrastructure spending.

All three organisations would also agree on front-loading expenditure under Transport 21 in case - as many now suspect - the construction sector starts slowing down in 2008.

On taxation there is also consensus, with Ibec joining the call for tax bands and personal tax credits to be indexed to inflation. There is also unity in their call on Cowen to fight proposals for harmonisation of the corporation tax base, a position that many, if not most, would agree to be in the Republic's interest.

But Ibec's proposals regarding energy taxation - and its silence on the growing burden of indirect taxation - suggest that it has become too intoxicated by social partnership.

Noting the increase in excise revenues received by the Government from auto diesel and industrial oils, they call for a reduction in both rates.

While correct in identifying higher fuel costs as a drag on the traded sector, a distinction needs to be made between cost pressures faced across the world and pressures on the energy cost front unique to the Republic. Brian Cowen has correctly pointed out that changes on energy taxation must be agreed at EU level and that any response to short-term changes in the price of oil are likely to be only of temporary value.

On this point, Ibec argues that the Republic's energy taxes are higher than the EU average. Agreed. But the Republic's rate of corporation tax is far lower. Put alongside Ibec's call to preserve our advantageous corporation tax regime, its stance on energy taxes is a bit disingenuous.

What would have been more relevant would be for Ibec to ask why electricity bills paid by workers working for the firms it represents pay more than 40 per cent more than their UK counterparts. In its submission, Isme gets closer to the real issue of energy costs as far as Irish competitiveness is concerned - the lack of competition in the sector. But Isme gets into some special pleading of their own. The idea to restore tax breaks for small business - restoring the 20 per cent tax rates on director dividends up to €50,000 - is worthy.

But if it is not balanced by a broader consideration of taxation there is the danger that, if granted, this will come at someone else's expense, such as a continued reliance on tax revenues from the housing market. Like Ibec and Isme, Chambers Ireland notes the increasing reliance of the economy on construction. But they are the only ones to note the narcotic dependency of Government revenue on this sector, and are also the only ones to call for methadone treatment to begin.

Chambers calls for a broad review of the tax base, including a lower standardised VAT rate of 18 per cent and the lowering of the stamp duty burden that is crippling young families.

And Chambers is the only organisation to talk about an issue that is becoming an increasing problem for workers and the firms that employ them - childcare. It's not that Ibec or Isme are being selfish brats. They are doing what every other lobby group in Ireland does at this time of year.

But in their budget submission, Chambers Ireland has shown just that bit more concern for the rest of us. Here's hoping it's rewarded by the Minister on budget day.