English encourages older people in Meath West to apply for the Fuel Allowance this Autumn

Local Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal and Fine Gael T.D. for
Meath West Damien English has encouraged older people in Meath West to
apply for the Fuel Allowance this autumn, as the new fuel allowance
season gets underway in advance of the winter.

“The Fuel Allowance scheme is designed to assist pensioners and other
very low income households to meet the cost of their heating needs
during the winter season.

“I encourage older people and people in receipt of social welfare in
Meath West to apply for the allowance. They can fill in the form in
their local Post Office, or find it online at
http://www.welfare.ie/en/Pages/Fuel-Allowance.aspx

“The Fuel Allowance is means tested and is paid to the customer with
their social welfare payment at a rate of €22.50 per week.

“People on an employment scheme or in receipt of a Back to Education
Allowance would also be entitled to the Fuel Allowance if they
continue to satisfy the conditions – including the means test.

“In order to qualify for the Fuel Allowance the claimant:

• Must be resident in the State
• Must be in receipt of certain qualifying payments
• Must live alone or only with:
• a qualified spouse/ civil partner / cohabitant or qualified child(ren);
• a person in receipt of a qualifying payment who would be entitled
  to the allowance in their own right;
• a person who is in receipt of Carer’s Allowance or Carer’s Benefit
  in respect of providing full time care and attention to the Fuel
  Allowance applicant or their qualified spouse / civil partner /
  cohabitant or qualified child(ren);
• a person receiving short term Jobseeker’s Allowance or the Basic
  Supplementary Welfare Allowance (less than 391 days).“As a Fine Gael TD for Meath West I am working hard to ensure that
  people who need it most, can benefit from the recovery in our economy.
  All those who qualify for the Fuel Allowance should apply for it now.
  Fairness will be the focus of the upcoming Budget and we will continue
  to reducing high levels of taxation on modest incomes and phase out
  the USC. Our top priority is to protect the economy and create more
  jobs, which in turn will fund better public services for hard pressed
  families.”

Discussing Fine Gael’s Long Term Economic Plan on LMFM today

Discussing Fine Gael’s Long Term Economic Plan on LMFM earlier today, listen below:

Increase in pay packets for many on first pay day of 2016 – English

Minister of State at the Department of Jobs and Fine GaelTD for Meath West, Damien English, has said that the USC changes introduced in Budget 2016 will be evident to thousands of people who are getting paid today (Friday) for the first time in 2016.

“Budget 2016 introduced a cut to the USC for low to middle income earners from 7% to 5.5%, reducing the tax rate to below 50%. The entry point into USC has also been increased to €13,000, exempting 90,000 low earners from the USC. All of these changes came into effect on 1^st January and will be visible in pay packets this month.

“These changes to the USC, which will help spread the benefits of the recovery and will ensure that hard work pays, were opposed by Fianna Fáil; the high tax party.

“Since the launch of the Action Plan for Jobs, over 135,000 jobs have been created. More people in work create the resources to cut taxes for working people and to invest in better services.

“Fine Gael has committed to eliminating the USC altogether during the term of the next Government. We have a long term plan to keep the recovery going and will continue to make responsible decisions to keep the economy strong.

“USC changes introduced in Budget 2016 will make a small but significant difference to workers in all parts of the country. The Irish people have worked too hard to get to where we are, we cannot go back. Fine Gael is committed to getting people back to work and will use the resources created to reduce taxes and invest in vital services.”

ENDS

Fall of 36.5% in Meath Live Register as local economy strengthens – English

Fine Gael TD for Meath West, Damien English, has said that the steady reduction in the number of people signing on the Live Register in Meath is strengthening the growing local economy.

“The latest CSO data shows that the Live Register in Meath has fallen by 36.5% since the launch of the Action Plan for Jobs in 2012, while the national unemployment rate is now 8.9%.

“We are seeing economic progress, with over 135,000 more people at work, but we cannot take for granted that stability and recovery will continue. It is also important that we ensure the recovery continues to spread to all parts of the country, including here in Meath.

“A drop in the number of people signing on the Live Register is very positive and highlights the growth in the local economy. More people in work creates the resources to cut taxes for working people and invest in better services.

“It is important that jobs are created that pay more than welfare and where hard work is rewarded. Fine Gael has a plan to ensure that parents earning the minimum wage receive a top-up to encourage them to enter the work-force. This move will also support small local businesses.

“Plans are also in place to eliminate the USC during the term of the next Government. This harsh tax, introduced by Fianna Fáil, is a burden on workers and I have been working for some time on behalf of the people of Meath to get rid of it.

“This Government will work to keep the economic recovery going, which helps to provide better services for all of society. The Regional Action Plan for Jobs is being rolled out to drive further job creation in Meath and I am optimistic that the numbers signing onto the Live Register will continue to fall as the Government continues to implement our plan.”

5 years ago today FF introduced USC. FG will abolish it – English

Five years on from the introduction of the USC by Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael is on course to abolish the punitive tax according to Fine Gael TD for Meath West and Minister for Skills, Research and Innovation, Damien English

“Five years ago the country was at its lowest ebb. The IMF had taken over the running of our economy. For those left in employment, Fianna Fáil introduced the Universal Social Charge which saw people’s take home pay severely reduced.

“Five years on Fianna Fáil has shown that when push comes to shove, it has no intention of reducing the impact of the USC on taxpayers. In the recent alternative budget presented by Fianna Fáil it refused to drop the main rate of USC on hard pressed low and middle income earners. They also voted to oppose cuts to the USC introduced by the Government in the last two budgets. In doing so they have reinforced their reputation as the high tax/high spend party.

“This Government has reduced the rate of USC on low and middle income earners and we will get rid of it over the lifetime of the next government, providing that our finances allow for it. We are committed to abolishing the USC because we implicitly understand that the sustainable reduction of our high taxes is good for our economy. Lower taxes support jobs and high taxes kill jobs. That’s a fact. Fianna Fáil doesn’t know where to start when it comes to job creation as evidenced by their lack of a jobs policy.  

“In January, taxpayers will see a reduction in their USC for the second consecutive year. We have consciously reduced the tax burden because people in this country pay too much tax.
 
“Five years on from the introduction of the USC we are seeing economic progress, with over 135,000 more people at work, but we cannot take for granted that stability and recovery will continue.

“The next election will be about who can be trusted to keep the recovery going, based on stability and progress as opposed to instability and chaos. We cannot go back to the same old Fianna Fáil who wrecked the economy, have learned nothing from the past and still has no plan to create jobs or ensure our economic recovery.”

Why Fine Gael is NOT a party of the elite

Fianna Fáil’s efforts to paint Fine Gael as a party of the elite are fatally undermined by this week’s budget…

FIANNA FÁIL’S NEWEST line of attack , which finance spokesman Michael McGrath has been pushing on this website, is that Fine Gael doesn’t care about ‘ordinary’ people.

Given that Fianna Fáil screwed virtually every ordinary person in the country, the irony of this statement will not be lost on many people. This week’s budget, as with its predecessors, provided clear evidence that ordinary people are at the heart of Fine Gael’s budgetary priorities.

We reduced the rate of USC on low and middle earners from 7% to 5.5%. Low and middle earners are the focus of our tax cuts. That’s why there’s no relief on earnings over €70,000.

We believe that people should be rewarded for their work and, from January, 42,000 lower earners will no longer have to pay any USC. This means that by next year 450,000 will have been removed from the USC net by this government.

There is also a 50 cent increase in the rate of pay for minimum wage workers on the way. A full time minimum wage worker will see their annual take home pay increase by €708, a 4.2% increase, while a person earning €55,000 will see their take home pay increase by €677 or 1.8%.

The Budget also provided a €550 self-employed tax credit for small business owners, many of whom are just about getting by.

There was also a €3 per week increase in the old age pension, a €5 increase of child benefit and the commitment to provide a second year of free pre-school care, which will significantly benefit working parents and people considering having children.

So much for not caring about ordinary people.

Fine Gael is committed to ensuring that there is work for everyone who can work and that people are incentivised to work.

We also implicitly understand that lower taxes lead to further job creation. More people at work means more money for the State to spend on services like health and education and on providing strong social protection to those who are out of work or unable to work.

Not a party of the elite

On Fine Gael, Micheal McGrath told TheJournal.ie recently: I don’t think they care too much about ordinary people.Source: TheJournal.ie

Michael McGrath is a very capable politician and will probably be the next leader of Fianna Fáil. But I don’t believe for one moment that he actually believes the guff he is spouting.

His comments reflect a clear effort to portray Fine Gael as a party of the elite, but Michael Noonan’s Budget emphatically debunks that notion.

When I go to a Fine Gael branch meeting I meet a lot of ordinary, decent individuals who care about their community and their country. I am fairly sure that McGrath meets the same kind of people at his local cumann as does every TD when they meet their supporters. I’m sure he and Fianna Fáil care about ordinary people – virtually everyone in politics does – but caring is not enough.

Politicians are not paid to care, they are paid to deliver. Fianna Fáil has failed on this front.

In government it presided over the economic equivalent of a head on car crash. Over 300,000 ordinary people lost their jobs, saw the value of their homes plummet, struggled to pay their mortgages and make ends meet.

This government had a plan. Like all rehabilitation plans it was hard, it required sacrifices, but thanks to the resilience of ordinary Irish people it worked.

Fianna Fáil’s alternative budget doesn’t stack up. Demographic changes mean that an extra €300 million a year is needed in education and health just to keep the current level of service. Around €267 million is needed to pay for the Lansdowne Road Agreement on public sector pay increases next year. Fianna Fáil did not account for either of these in its costings.

The Irish economy is in recovery but still has a long way to go. The challenge for the next government will be to ensure that the recovery is sustainable and that we don’t see a return to boom and bust economics.

The choice facing the Irish people in the forthcoming election is clear: Do you chose a government with a strong record of delivery and a vision for sustainable growth, or take a chance on a party without a plan?

Damien English is Minister of State for Skills, Research and Innovation and a Fine Gael TD for Meath West.

Minister English welcomes new Youth Employability Initiative

Local Minister for Skills, Research and Innovation and Meath West Fine Gael T.D. Damien English has welcomed a new Youth Employability Initiative by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs and urged interested and qualified groups in Meath to apply.

The €600,000 Initiative will provide grants to voluntary youth services for programmes that target disadvantaged young people to improve their employability.

It will provide one-off grants for Department and Children and Youth Affairs funded organisations, services and projects under the Special Projects for Youth Scheme (SPY), Youth Information Centres (YICs), Young People’s Facilities and Services Fund (YPFSF), Local Drugs Task Force (LDTF) and Youth Service Grant Scheme (YSGS).

A Guidance Note and Application Form is available here http://dcya.gov.ie/documents/publications/20151009YouthEmployInitApplicationForm.pdf.

Minister English said: “Over 380,000 young people participate in youth services, programmes and clubs throughout the country. Young people who engage in youth work activities have the opportunity to attain specific skills, which can enhance employability. These skills include learning to learn, social and civic competence, leadership, communication, teamwork, and entrepreneurship.”

The new Youth Employability Initiative will target those young people who are most at risk of unemployment and who are not in education, employment or training and provide programmes for them to enhance these skills.   It is anticipated that up to 20- 25 new youth projects and an estimated 200-300 young people could be assisted under the programme.

Minister English’s Budget 2016 Speech

On Wednesday night 14th October I addressed the Dáil on Budget 2016:

This budget is designed to support the recovery, hard pressed families and begin future proofing the economy.

This budget is neither the hair shirt budget that some Economists have called for, nor is the silk shirt that the opposition seem to think we can afford, rather it is a prudent budget that will create jobs.

It will remove barriers to work and make work pay, grow the economy and keep the recovery going while reducing the current account deficit.

Business in Ireland has welcomed this budget. Danny McCoy of IBEC said “The budget is right for the economy at this time and signals a new phase of economic development. The crisis is behind us and we are planning ahead. The Government has taken on board the concerns of business, reduced tax and encouraged private investment.”

ISME and the SFA have also welcomed the Budget. The SFA Chairman, A J Noonan stated “This Budget is a strong endorsement by Government of the importance of entrepreneurship and small business in Ireland.”

But this is not just a budget for business and jobs, it is also a budget for our young families.

My constituency of Meath West has one of the highest concentrations of young families in the country, with a youth dependency ratio of over 38%.

You only have to walk around the streets of Navan, Trim or Enfield to see just how young our communities are. Our young population means we can look forward to a more hopeful future, but families cannot live on hope alone.

They need help now and this budget does just that.

Cutting USC, raising child benefit, and extending the free preschool scheme to accommodate all three to five year olds will benefit young families in Meath West and throughout the country.

These families endured a lot of the pain in the recession it is only right that they get some of the gain from the national recovery.

Talk to any parent on the doorsteps in Meath West – education and the future of our children is a major focus. This budget will reduce class sizes; it will recruit an additional 2,260 teachers.

This budget will deliver a better education to our children and will invest in career guidance. This will help our children chose the courses and the skills they need to get a good job and build a better future.

With this budget young school leavers will now have a lot more choice in their career paths.

We are investing an additional €10.5m to effectively double the number of Apprenticeship Schemes available in Ireland.

These 25 new Apprenticeship Schemes will cover areas such as

ICT,

Transport and Logistics,

Financial Services,

Tourism and Hospitality

and the bulk of these will be delivered in 2016.

We need to refocus the third level system to create a more enterprise responsive educational system; we need to provide the skills that students and industry require.

Future proofing the Economy is all about building skills at all levels including our pool of research skills.

Ireland’s future economic growth and prosperity will depend on our continued investment in science, technology and innovation.

This investment is all about developing:

A competitive knowledge based economy and society;

Driving innovation in enterprise;

Building human capital

And maximising the return on R&D investment for economic and social progress.

Investment in research and development is crucial for creating and maintaining high-value jobs.

In addition to the investment announced yesterday, my Department will be allocating an additional €29m specifically for investment in research and innovation to spend before the end of this year.

In addition to this, the overall 2016 capital investment will allow Enterprise Ireland to:

Support 100 Innovative High Potential start Up Companies in 2016 employing 2,000 people.

Issue six Competitive Start Fund calls with a target of financially supporting 85 innovative entrepreneurs.

Fund over 100 in-company R&D projects for companies that are valued in excess €100,000, and

Continue the development of Knowledge Transfer Ireland and the wider national Technology Transfer system to create 30 new spinout companies

For Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), the 2016 allocation will:

Continue to fund the 12 SFI Research Centres, which represents an investment of €355m from the government and €190m from over 200 industry partners.

Train some 3000 researchers for key positions in Industry

Science Foundation Ireland will also undertake a recruitment campaign in partnership with the Irish Universities to attract world-class researchers.

I am pleased that Ireland’s participation in the European Space Agency (ESA) will continue to support a growing number of Irish companies in the rapidly expanding European and Global space markets. In this sector we will see:

A doubling of sales to over €80m

A rise in total employment to over 2,300, and

An expansion in the number of companies actively engaged with ESA to over 75

We are competing in an ever more competitive global environment. I am therefore pleased to report that work is almost complete on a new Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation.

It is now time for fresh strategic ideas to make research work to maximum effect for the country.

The vision for the new Strategy will be underpinned by 5 key goals:

an internationally competitive research system;

excellent research with relevance and impact for the economy and for society;

a renowned pool of talent in both academia and industry;

a joined-up research eco-system, responsive to emerging opportunities;

and a strong innovative enterprise base, growing employment, sales and exports.

We need to ensure that we have a world leading state-of-the-art research and innovation ecosystem in Ireland.

I am confident that the upcoming Strategy will provide us with the roadmap to deliver on this ambition for Ireland.

To conclude a Leas Ceann Comhairle,

This Budget charts a responsible, prudent path to fiscal stability, economic growth and opportunity.

The Budget marks a new stage in Ireland’s road to full recovery and a more sustainable future.

It will support that recovery and will begin to future proof the economy.

I commend this budget to the House and to the country.

Budget 2016 interview on Loosetalk with Michael Reade on LMFM

This morning i participated on Michael Reade’s Loosetalk programme on LMFM, one of Ireland’s major regional radio stations and my own local station in Co. Meath.  The discussion focussed on Budget 2016.

You can listen here:

http://www.lmfm.ie/Podcasts/Podcasts/Show?showalias=the-michael-reade-show-1#7133

Budget 2016 will support Meath SMEs – Minister English

Budget begins equalisation of tax treatment between self-employed & PAYE workers

Damien English, Fine Gael TD for Meath West and the Minister for Skills, Research and Innovation has said that Budget 2016 will support SMEs to grow and continue to create jobs in county Meath.

“Budget 2016 will support SMEs to grow and continue to create jobs. The introduction of a €550 self-employed tax credit marks a welcome start along the road to the equalisation of income tax credits between self-employed people and PAYE workers, addressing what was an unfair treatment of self-employed people in this country. The Earned Income Credit of €550 will be available to self-employed people who are ineligible for a PAYE credit on their salaries and will really benefit small retailers, publicans, farmers and tradesmen in Meath

“My Fine Gael colleagues and I recently ran a campaign called “Standing up for Small Business”, where we surveyed and held discussions with small businesses around the country. The need to equalise the tax treatment of the self-employed and PAYE workers was one of the biggest issues to arise out of that discussion, and I am delighted that the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan has started this process today. This is a first step and if returned to Government we will complete tax equalisation for the self-employed in order to support job creators.

“I also know that Meath businesses wanted to see reductions in the general tax burden to help them to create employment. I welcome the cuts to the Universal Social Charge, meaning the marginal rate of tax for those earning below €70,000 will fall below 50% for the first time since 2009. Changes to the USC entry threshold will mean a total of 700,000 people will now be outside the USC net.

“Other measures in Budget 2016 to benefit small businesses owners in Meath include:

• Revised Capital Gains tax relief for entrepreneurs, which will apply a reduced CGT rate of 20% to the disposal in whole or in part of a business up to a limit of €1 million in chargeable gains,
• The 9% VAT rate for the hospitality sector which will continue to assist small business owners working in the tourism sector, which has been such an integral part of our economic recovery,
• Reduction in costs for retailers to accept card payments, saving retailers €36 million in fees per year and incentivising electronic payments,
• The capping of motor tax at €900 per annum is significant for hauliers and will enable them to better compete with the UK, benefitting not just hauliers, but all exporting companies,
• Employers’ PRSI has been adjusted to cater for minimum wage increases to ensure that neither employees or employers are worse off.

“Small and family businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and have played a crucial role in the recovery that is now well underway. Over 125,000 jobs have been created nationally since the launch of the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs in 2012.  I know that not every family in Meath has felt it yet, but the measures contained in Budget 2016 will help small and family businesses continue to grow and create even more jobs. The knock on effect of this will mean that even more people across Meath will feel the benefits of the economic recovery.

“The last few budgets have been difficult, but they made it possible for Ireland to exit the bailout, reduce our debts, and move into a real recovery. That recovery is still fragile however and the top priority of this year’s budget is to secure the recovery, while providing relief and better services for the Irish people. It includes measures like a cut in the USC, more nurses and doctors for the health service, more affordable and quality childcare, and addressing the unfair treatment of the self-employed. These are sensible, affordable steps that will keep the recovery going and bring its benefits to more households so that people across Meath can enjoy a better quality of life.”