Eat, drink and be merry this Christmas because, come January, when a range of hefty new price rises begins to kick in, whatever you do is going to cost you. Shane Hegarty fast forwards to a nightmare day in 2003
Whatever about last Wednesday's Budget day being a day of indirect taxes, it is becoming apparent that every day in 2003 will be a taxing one. Some prices have already increased, and other hikes are on the way. It will sometimes feel that from the moment you wake in the morning until you put your head on the pillow at night, the money is draining from your pockets.
When you put the morning porridge on the gas, make sure not to overcook it. Bord Gáis is currently seeking the go-ahead to up the price of the household bill by more than 14 per cent in 2003. And don't imagine you'll save by cooking it in the microwave, as the ESB is set to increase domestic electricity prices by 13.25 per cent in January.
When leaving the bin out to be collected, you may want to fit in as much as you can. Dublin City Council is looking for aincrease in collection rates, and if it succeeds your bin charges will go up to €156 per year.
Sending the children off to school on the bus will cost you more, thanks to a recent fare increase. If you go to work on the DART, meanwhile, you'll resent standing for the journey even more now that the cost of a return to Dublin is also up.
You could pass the time by daydreaming about how you will spend your expected 5 per cent pay rise. Unfortunately, even moderate pay rises will be heavily taxed, so that that 5 per cent may, in real terms, be only 3.5 per cent. This doesn't take into account the predictions of some economists that consumer goods will rise in price by over 6 per cent in 2003, eating into the rest of your hard-earned cash.
If your partner drives to work, he or she may be cursing the 20 per cent increase in parking charges being sought by Dublin City Council. In 2003, it wants rates to increase to €2.28 per hour in the city centre and to €1.80 elsewhere.
This will be on top of the 10 per cent increase in motor tax - and a similar increase in Vehicle Registration Tax that you may have thought you had avoided when the Budget only imposed it on two-litre cars. And if you drive a diesel car, fuel is up three cent a litre.
Next year is not so far in the future that traffic jams will have been eliminated. The Budget put an extra €209 million into the infrastructure programme, meaning that at least five new projects should get started, most likely digging up the stretch of road you travel most.
If you haven't learnt to drive yet, be aware that the price of lessons went up with the increase in VAT.
If you're under the weather, you may be inclined to ride it out rather than go to the pharmacist, now that the family doesn't get a rebate on drugs bills unless it spends €70 per month. Health insurance costs, meanwhile, will have gone up because public hospitals have asked insurance companies to pay an extra 15 per cent for private beds from January. VHI premiums went up 18 per cent last September: BUPA is expected to follow suit in February.
You might want to buy yourself flowers to make yourself feel better, but they're also more expensive, thanks to the VAT rise. And if you pay for them with a combined cash and Laser card, remember that it costs €20 - up from €6.25 - before you even use it.
Whatever about the human members of the family, if it's the pet who's not feeling too well you'll discover that the price of a visit to the vet also went up by 1 per cent in the Budget.
You may be planning a break from it all, but don't forget that hotel and guesthouse prices are affected by the jump in VAT. So is the hire of a caravan, boat, mobile home or tent, so you won't get around it that way. And if you do go somewhere, it will help if you already know how to get there. Maps will be more expensive too.
If you consider taking an afternoon away from all this to play golf, note that green fees will also go up in line with VAT.
When you get home, you might decide to clear some of the increased bills, marvelling at how much you're paying just to pay them: 15 cent per cheque, almost double the previous charge.
If you've finally given up cigarettes - after the 50-cent per pack price increase gave you the final push - you may want to treat your taste buds to a Chinese takeaway. Better skip on the starters though, because chicken fried rice also went up with the VAT. You can pay with a credit card that now costs you €40 to own - double the 2002 price.
If it's chilly, it might be wiser to put on another jumper rather than crack open a bale of briquettes (VAT again). If it's raining, you may feel a little nervous. The heavy flooding of the past two years is likely to affect the future cost of house insurance.
By 2003, RTÉ will most likely have got its €40 TV licence increase, but even if not, the VAT increase means it'll cost you extra to opt instead for a cinema, exhibition or museum. A trip to the funfair went up too. You could relax with the newspaper and a whiskey, only VAT affects the paper and the drink has gone up 20 cent a shot.
At the end of another taxing day, you can at least settle down for a night's sleep, happy that sweet dreams are one thing the Government hasn't figured out a way to charge you for.