[ad_1]
The government will spend 9 billion euros next year in the fight against Covid-19, revealed the Minister of Public Expenditure, Michael McGrath.
r McGrath said Independiente.es that the Budget will be “a particularly complex process this year” due to the significant costs related to the pandemic that has wreaked havoc on the economy this year.
“At this point in the budget process, we estimate that up to € 9 billion of Covid-related spending will be required in 2021 to support our economy, maintain public services, and protect our healthcare against this global pandemic,” McGrath said.
The minister said he is also working on the assumption that there will be no no-deal Brexit by the end of the year.
“I am working with an envelope of 900 million euros to face the pressures on existing services in all areas of government,” he said.
“This will add to just over a billion euros in previously committed current spending measures and a planned increase of one billion euros in capital spending next year to support investment in the economy,” he added.
McGrath said the backdrop to the 2021 Budget is “one of unprecedented uncertainty,” but said the government is “determined to protect our citizens and our economy in the most effective way possible.”
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe has already announced that there will be no tax cuts to the budget, meaning that the additional funds will be used to pay for new spending initiatives or expansion of existing schemes.
McGrath told Cabinet that he will begin negotiations with ministers on his spending request before the budget on October 13.
Ministers will present their cases for additional resources to fund their departments and most of the negotiations will focus on the costs associated with the pandemic.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin told Dáil today that the impact of Covid-19 could occur “throughout 2021.”
He said the pandemic will have a “very significant impact on our budget.”
Martin said the financial implications of Covid “will extend beyond April”, saying that the hospitality, tourism and travel industries are hit the hardest.
Later in the Dáil, Sinn Féin TD Claire Kerrane asked Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys about measures to protect vulnerable households from energy poverty due to the rising bills they face due to spending more time in their homes due to the pandemic.
Ms Humphreys said that government support includes the fuel allocation scheme that helps 350,000 households and pays € 24.50 per week for 28 weeks and was extended this year due to the Covid-19 crisis.
She said ESRI is studying how best to minimize energy poverty in the context of planned increases in carbon tax commitments. Ms Humphreys said that the fuel allowance was increased by € 2 per week last year using the proceeds from the carbon tax increase in the last budget.
Ms. Humphreys noted a government commitment to the additional funds raised by the carbon tax in part to provide specific social welfare initiatives to prevent energy poverty.
Online editors
[ad_2]