Political parties, community groups and charities have criticised cuts announced in the Budget, including changes to the fuel allowance, and increased charges on students.
The Irish National Organisation for the Unemployed has expressed concern that the change to the Job Seekers Benefit entitlement to a five-day week basis rather than six would act as a disincentive to part-time work.
The body welcomed the decision to maintain the basic rate of social welfare payments.
It also welcomed an announcement of funding for the Labour Market Activation fund and said it looked forward to hearing the details of the Pathway to Work policy.
But the organisation said the Government’s response fell “well short” of what was required and that it had missed an opportunity to invest in unemployed people’s future.
It expressed concern that the change to the payment entitlement from a six-day to a five-day week, would act as a disincentive for many unemployed people to take up part-time work.
It also said the increased €6 per week contribution for people in receipt of Rent and Mortgage Interest Supplement; the six-week reduction in the number of weeks that the fuel allowance is paid, the reduction of €200 in the grant for people on the Back to Education Allowance and the reductions in Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowances, would all “make it more difficult for many people”.
Children’s charity Barnardos expressed concern at the impact the social welfare changes would have on low-income families.
It welcomed the decision not to cut basic child benefit rates for the first and second child, but said cutting rates for the third and subsequent child would put larger families under increased pressure.
The loss of €19 per month for the third child and €17 for the fourth and each subsequent child equated to a total loss of €432 a year for a family with four children, the charity said.
“The loss of support to these families comes days after recent CSO statistics indicate that amongst those that saw their consistent poverty rates rise from 6.3 per cent in 2009 to 9.6 per cent to 2010 are families with more than three children.”
Fianna Fáil said the Government’s plan to cut the number of weeks each year for which the fuel allowance is payable was a “crude and cruel” cost-cutting measure.
Charities representing older people, Age Action, and Active Retirement Ireland said the cut in the fuel allowance year announced today in the Budget would increase the incidence of fuel poverty amongst older people.
Age Action spokesman Eamon Timmins said the announcement was all the harder considering that the free gas and electricity units received by older people had been cut by 20 per cent in September.
“The Government has already flagged that it will increase VAT by 2 per cent, while the carbon tax is also expected to be increased, adding further to the cost of fuel,” Mr Timmins said.
“The bottom line is that for older people – some of whom had to choose between food and fuel last winter – the coming months are going to be very tough,” Mr Timmins said.
Poorer older people would also be harder hit by the new €100 household charge as the Government had no plans for a waiver scheme for those on low incomes.
Sick pensioners who did not have a medical card would be affected by the increase in the income threshold for the Drug Payment Scheme from €120 to €132 per month.
The older people’s charity welcomed the fact that the State Pension was not cut, and the €15m allocated to allow access to free GP care for those on the long term illness scheme was also welcomed by the charity.
Youth organisation Macra na Feirme said the decision to levy and additional €250 on students would put them under even more pressure at a time when families were already struggling to send children to college.
“This is a short-sighted move by the Government. We need to ensure we have a skilled workforce in order to contribute to the economic recovery,” the organisation said.
Cuts in maintenance grants to postgraduate students was “another blow to those determined to develop their skills base and contribute to the economic recovery”.
The ‘Repudiate the Debt’ campaign said billions in spending cuts announced by the Government were “dwarfed” by the billions paid to bondholders.
The group said the cuts in spending on health, welfare and many other areas would not address or deal with “the elephant in the room” – the “unjust, socialised corporate debt that the previous government socialised and put on the backs of the Irish people”.
This policy that had been followed by the present coalition Government.
“The Government claim that they need to make budget savings over the next four years of €12.4 billion.
“This is simply untrue: the total adjustment and the aggregate total for the next four years is €33.9 billion. This figure is much less than the €55 billion that will be handed over in the same period to bank bond-holders.”