Sinn Féin has denied claims that it is planning a €16 billion “piggy bank heist” as Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil rounded on the party’s tax and spending plans.
With just over a week and a half left until polling day, Sinn Féin on Tuesday unveiled its general election manifesto with promises to spend an extra €56 billion – made up of additional €41.8 billion capital spend and an additional €14.3 billion in current spending – over the next five years.
This includes plans for a multibillion-euro “mini budget” in the first 100 days of government and a tax package which would see the eventual abolition of the universal social charge on incomes up to €45,000. The party has also pledged to abolish the property tax, which currently brings in about €500 million a year and represents about 7 per cent of local government revenue. Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty said this would leave a gap in local authority funding which his party would cover through general government expenditure.
Fine Gael Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe accused Sinn Féin of narrowing the tax base to such an extent that tax receipts would fall away. He also said Sinn Féin wanted to conduct “the biggest heist ever on the island of Ireland with the raiding of carefully saved funds and throwing caution to the wind”, referring to the €16 billion Future Ireland Fund and the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund.
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However, Mr Doherty told The Irish Times his party would not use the money in those funds, and would instead add a further €15 billion to them which would come from projected surpluses. He last night called on Mr Donohoe to “immediately retract” his statement.
“Our manifesto makes it clear that not only will this money not be touched but we will increase the funds by a further €15 billion. This will bring the funds to a total of €31 billion,” Mr Doherty said.
Sinn Féin has also promised to increase the minimum wage, end long-term homelessness by 2030, deliver 300,000 new homes by 2029 and introduce €10-a-day childcare.
The party has also proposed a “solidarity tax” for high-income earners at 3 per cent for income over €140,000 as well as a second home charge of €400. Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald also defended her plans for a review of RTÉ’s coverage of the conflict in the Middle East. Fine Gael accused Sinn Féin of political interference “in the independence and editorial process of our public-service broadcaster”.
As the general election campaign moved past the halfway point, the focus remained on each of the party’s spending promises.
It comes as the Health Service Executive confirmed to The Irish Times that spending on the national children’s hospital was, at the end of October, €18.85 million “over profile” or above expected spending levels. A spokesman confirmed that at the end of October, some €200.36 million had been spent on the new children’s hospital from the HSE capital plan. The total 2024 allocation for the hospital in the capital plan is just over €209 million. Fine Gael leader Simon Harris came under pressure this week over spending on the hospital, with Mr Harris saying the “buck stops with me”.
The focus on spending and financial prudence also comes as Mr Harris will on Wednesday outline to a Cabinet meeting his plans for a “Brexit-type” response to protect Ireland from future economic shocks.
He will detail his recent engagement with US president-elect Donald Trump. He is expected to state there will be a “challenging time ahead” for Ireland’s economic security with significant geopolitical instability.
Steps to protect the country will include “working with partners in the EU and at national level to ensure that Ireland is well-positioned to mitigate against any possible downsides”, a source said.
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