Budget 2009 revealed: Sindo

[kerrynorth]

Sorry no link yet but these are the highlights (or lowlights if you prefer):

Government to borrow €10.5billion or 5.5% of GDP;
HIgher rate of Income tax may rise by 1'%;
Many government departments to see 10% budget cuts;
Overall government spending to fall 5% in real terms;
Tax revenues to fall to 2004 levels or €12.4billon below profile;
Many parts of the NDP to be jettisoned.

Need I go on?

Dust down those hairshirts and flair trousers. Not only is back to the 1980's but these figures imply that absolute collapse of the economy. These figures will push Ireland into the technical definition of a depression in 2010. You can count on the real economy (GNP rather than GDP) contracting by over 5% next year with similiar figures for 2010. Therefore the economy will contract by in excess of 10% over the 2008-10 period, the technical defintion of a depression. I can only laugh at this stage at the 'FTB support measures', newsflash, there are not going to be that many in the economy over the next few years. The Live Register will hit 350k next year and 400k in 2010. Unemployment will be back to 15%+.

[Tribunaljunkie]

Sorry no link yet but these are the highlights (or lowlights if you prefer):

Government to borrow €10.5billion or 5.5% of GDP;
HIgher rate of Income tax may rise by 1'%;
Many government departments to see 10% budget cuts;
Overall government spending to fall 5% in real terms;
Tax revenues to fall to 2004 levels or €12.4billon below profile;
Many parts of the NDP to be jettisoned.

Need I go on?

Dust down those hairshirts and flair trousers. Not only is back to the 1980's but these figures imply that absolute collapse of the economy. These figures will push Ireland into the technical definition of a depression in 2010. You can count on the real economy (GNP rather than GDP) contracting by over 5% next year with similiar figures for 2010. Therefore the economy will contract by in excess of 10% over the 2008-10 period, the technical defintion of a depression. I can only laugh at this stage at the 'FTB support measures', newsflash, there are not going to be that many in the economy over the next few years. The Live Register will hit 350k next year and 400k in 2010. Unemployment will be back to 15%+.

Jesus. If that is correct then we are back in the 1980s. They were only talking about a deficit of €3b a couple of months ago, €7b last week, and now €10 billion???

Forget recession - if this is true we are facing a depression!!!

How the hell did the government blow the Celtic Tiger so spectacularly?

The one good thing: FF and the GNs will collapse in support almost as quickly as the economy. Given that FF created this mess, they deserve to get the blame.

[lowtaxireland]

good....it's about time we took the hit we need to shake us out of our complacent sloth.

[draiocht23]

good....it's about time we took the hit we need to shake us out of our complacent sloth.

Speak for yourself mate

[Deep Throat]

i cant stop laughing

[Drico]

For the love of God the working class are screwed!!

Depression indeed, when the government refused to discuss the economy before the budget I was kinda expecting something a bit better, Biffo is in charge though I suppose...

[lowtaxireland]

good....it's about time we took the hit we need to shake us out of our complacent sloth.

Speak for yourself mate

i know...it sounds like a pretty heartless thing to say.....but the fact is that as a nation we borrowed up to the lobbers and behaved like morons. the best way is to face up to that fact and try to redefine the basis of our economy. we should not make the whole thing worse by trying to run away from it.

[Defeated Romanticist]

i cant stop laughing

Putting party ahead of country are we.

I cannot believe we are actually taking the Sindo seriously,

I'll believe it when I see it.

[draiocht23]

good....it's about time we took the hit we need to shake us out of our complacent sloth.

Speak for yourself mate

i know...it sounds like a pretty heartless thing to say.....but the fact is that as a nation we borrowed up to the lobbers and behaved like morons. the best way is to face up to that fact and try to redefine the basis of our economy. we should not make the whole thing worse by trying to run away from it.

So, in effect, you're glad the government inflated the housing market, collapsed the economy and left the average worker pretty screwed - facing a combination of unemployment, below-inflation wage increases and reduced public services....

I don't know about you, but I have not been living like a lotto winner for the past couple of years and am not greeting this "soft landing/ market readjustment" with the same kind of enthusiasm.

[R Paul]

Sorry no link yet but these are the highlights (or lowlights if you prefer):

Government to borrow €10.5billion or 5.5% of GDP;
HIgher rate of Income tax may rise by 1'%;
Many government departments to see 10% budget cuts;
Overall government spending to fall 5% in real terms;
Tax revenues to fall to 2004 levels or €12.4billon below profile;
Many parts of the NDP to be jettisoned.

Need I go on?

Dust down those hairshirts and flair trousers. Not only is back to the 1980's but these figures imply that absolute collapse of the economy. These figures will push Ireland into the technical definition of a depression in 2010. You can count on the real economy (GNP rather than GDP) contracting by over 5% next year with similiar figures for 2010. Therefore the economy will contract by in excess of 10% over the 2008-10 period, the technical defintion of a depression. I can only laugh at this stage at the 'FTB support measures', newsflash, there are not going to be that many in the economy over the next few years. The Live Register will hit 350k next year and 400k in 2010. Unemployment will be back to 15%+.

Well, that would put our unemployment rate way above that of every other EU state, so I guess we should all be grateful we had the chance to learn other EU languages at first hand over the last few years. Who'd have thought they'd come in so useful, so quickly?