Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
SOME 68 PER CENT of Irish people have seen their take-home wages fall in the last year, a new poll has shown.
And one in three people fear they will be unable to meet at least one mortgage repayment over the coming year – with almost one in ten having already resorted to borrowing from moneylenders to make ends meet.
However, the survey carried out by Amárach Research for the Irish Daily Mail and RTÉ Frontline shows broad support for the Government’s approach in making savings. Just over two thirds agree with the focus on cutting spending programmes rather than increasing taxes.
Nevertheless, 76 per cent would favour an increase in the top rate of income tax. The rate, which has already been increased in previous Budgets from 40 to 42 per cent, largely affects those earning more than around €30,000 a year.
One in 20 people in the survey of 1,000 adults admitted to not declaring income to avoid tax.
The survey showed 19 per cent of people – almost one in five – have already missed at least one mortgage repayment, with the average number of payments missed standing at 3.3. More than one in four have missed a payment on another form of loan.
Almost everybody – 94 per cent – said they had reduced their spending in the last year.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
I’m just waiting for the banks to pay us our sweet, sweet interest for the big fat emergency loan they received from our pockets.
The issue is that the Government, both current and former have faied miserably to deliver a key plank of the Memorandum of Understanding agreed with the Troika. It was agreed that the government would take action to reduce costs and prices to consumers.
The idea was that medical, education, legal services, energy and telecoms costs would be forced down thus enabling the citizen to better cope with falling wages and increasing taxes. Apart from a few anodine remarks from Messrs Shatter, O’Reilly and Quinn absolutely nothing as been done.
Small wonder of course, Dr O’Reilly, a partner in one of the largest medical practises is concentrating on diverting resource from the hospitals to the GPs and Alan Shatter, a partner in one of the largest law firms in the country is attacking the Bar and pushing the work to solicitors. I don’t know what’s the issue with Rhuari Quinn. He appears to have gone native, along with Joan Burton.
They all seem content to wash their hands of energy and telecoms, having completely abdicated responsibilty.
If they just ignored the vested interests and lobby groups and forced down the costs of day to day living we would all accept, if reluctantly, that higher taxes are necessary and fair(ish). We might also give them a second chance at the next elections.
Exactly. No one with a brain disagrees with the fact that our spending outstrips the state income and needs adjustment. But in order to maintain the same levels of activity, we need to see services and products drop in price, or else they will drop in volume of sales.
One big gripe is motorway toll costs – never dropping despite the ability of the govt to intervene if necessary – and that is just one obvious cost that could be pulled back..
Nail on the head. Cost of living is far too high and makes it difficult for people to adjust when wages are cut and taxes are raised. The other thing is that a reduction in the cost of living would also actually assist in the cuts, social welfare rates could also be lowered if the cost of living was reduced, as could public sector wages. Mortgages are another issue artificially driving up the cost of living, and leaving less disposable income in peoples pockets.
Find it hard to believe 2/3rd agree with kenny and co.
Statistics can be manipulated to suit, just remember the shite biffo and co. were coming out with most days.
John there was a time when I would have been surprired as well but last Saturday there was a protest march here, yet even though we have more than 460k people out of work there was only about 2 k took part in the march therein lies the answer.
The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the European Union rather than German, which was the other possibility.
As part of the negotiations, the British Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a 5-year phase-in plan that would become known as “Euro-English”.
In the first year, “s” will replace the soft “c”. Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy. The hard “c” will be dropped in favour of “k”. This should klear up konfusion, and keyboards kan have one less letter.
There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year when the troublesome “ph” will be replaced with “f”. This will make words like fotograf 20% shorter.
In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible.
Governments will enkourage the removal of double letters which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling.
Also, al wil agre that the horibl mes of the silent “e” in the languag is disgrasful and it should go away.
By the 4th yer people wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing “th” with “z” and “w” with “v”.
During ze fifz yer, ze unesesary “o” kan be dropd from vords kontaining “ou” and after ziz fifz yer, ve vil hav a reil sensi bl riten styl.
Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi tu understand ech oza. Ze drem of a united urop vil finali kum tru.
Und efter ze fifz yer, ve vil al be speking German like zey vunted in ze forst plas.
If zis mad you smil, pleas pas on to oza pepl.
**************************
Haha. Comment of the week.
See the latest earnings figures for Ireland breakdown, including changes on 2008 levels here:
http://trueeconomics.blogspot.com/2011/11/28112011-average-hourly-earnings-q3.html
Once I see data based on “averages” I tend to reach for salt cellar. The use of averages in deteminening policy has allowed the grossly overpaid (>100,000 pa) manderines in public service jobs get away with murder.
Constantin.. I noticed the education rate is very high. Is that due to the short working week of teachers and lecturers? Or have I got it wrong. Supplementary: the deficit is around 13 billion now, is that correct? what do you think it will be realistically this time next year?
RTE and Daily Mail Poll. Thats all *right* then.
That’s what you get when you do a poll in leinster house!
fine gael/labour no different to fianna fail/greens. except less corrupt. so far. the things that should be tackled like the croke park agreement Will not be touched. but the ordinary Joe soap in the street still gets screwed. same as before.
What’s forgotten amidst the heat and noise is that another three austerity budgets will follow after this one if the 3% ‘target’ deficit is to be reached by 2016 plus make annual repayments on the bailout. Two things should be obvious by now. The pace of austerity is too fast and it isn’t working, unless you are a bank or a bondholder.
Haha very good Paul
have your say