THE TAOISEACH HAS announced that a suite of measures which aim to tackle rising living costs will be published at the end of this week.

Martin noted that there will be no increase in the base rate of social welfare or a decrease in value added tax (VAT) as part of the measures, saying it’s “not a mini budget”. 

He said the increase in global energy prices is particularly responsible for the significant inflation seen in recent months.

The government now suspects that the inflationary cycle may persist in the medium term – longer than was originally forecast by the European Central Bank – so it is taking action.

“We do want to look after people who are hardest hit by the increase in home heating, in terms of fuel, and in terms of basic necessities of life. And the people on low incomes in particular. That, as best we can, to target measures to help people who are suffering as a result of this increase in prices,” Martin told RTÉ’s This Week radio programme.

The Fianna Fáil leader singled out health and transport charges as areas where the government can take quick action to help alleviate the pressure on families and others facing financial difficulty.

He said the range of measures are still being finalised and will be announced by the end of this week. He noted that the timing of the impact will vary; with some measures being once-off and others being more sustainable.

Martin added that carbon tax increases will go ahead as planned in May, despite opposition calls for them to be deferred.

“The overwhelming cause of the price increase in fuel and energy is international and global, there’s no question about that. Climate change is a pressing reality and we have to try and avoid short termism in terms of climate change policy,” Martin said.

He added that the government will also announce a major retrofitting programme this week, which will feature “very extensive” grants.

“It’s a major, major retrofitting program, but the funding to enable us to do that comes from the carbon tax. And that is a redistribution of wealth to help those in terms of their weekly, and yearly charges and cost of living. It’s a good measure for reducing emissions as well.”