The Green Party will seek taxes on energy, changes to income tax bands and a narrowing of the gap between rich and poor as its price for supporting the next government, it announced yesterday.
While proposing to tax the industrial use of energy, Mr Trevor Sargent TD rejected suggestions that this would drive multinational industry out of Ireland.
He said party proposals to increase corporation tax to 17.5 per cent and raise tax on capital would not necessarily lead to a flight of investment and job losses.
"Eco-taxes could enhance competitiveness in the long term," he told a press conference in Dublin yesterday. "As energy prices rise worldwide, it is the countries with the energy-efficient industries that will be competitive."
He said the main political parties were "still reliant on the GNP/GDP mantra" when it came to discussing economic progress. "Our focus is on quality of life and sustainability," he said. The party wanted to shift the emphasis from taxing labour to taxing consumption.
The party's environment spokeswoman, Cllr Mary White, said there were major inadequacies in the State's public transport, water supply, health system and other services. "What good is a roaring economy if basic building blocks are missing?" she asked.
The party's economic spokesman, Mr Dan Boyle, said the Green Party decision on whether to support a future government would be very dependent on social policy and not simply environmental issues.
"Each McCreevy budget has seen a widening of the gap between rich and poor. To a lesser extent, each of Ruairi Quinn's budgets before McCreevy widened that gap as well," he said.
The party would link all social welfare benefits to increases in the Consumer Price Index and work towards a monthly children's allowance payment of £200 for each child (the rates following increases in the December Budget are £67.50 for each of the first two children and £86 for subsequent children).
It also wants to see EU levels of expenditure on health and education, equal spending on roads and public transport infrastructure and an increase in overseas development aid to 0.7 per cent of GNP immediately, rising to 1 per cent over the lifetime of the next government.
On income tax, it proposes an introductory rate of 10 per cent and three higher rates of 25 per cent, 33 per cent and 50 per cent. Those on the minimum wage would pay tax at the standard rate. The party would phase out both employers' and employees' PRSI.
Mr Boyle said the issue of how Ireland traded with the rest of the world would also be a major issue. Trade must be conducted "on an ethical and environmentally sustainable basis".