Budget 2024, announced on October 10, 2023, outlines the financial plans and priorities for Ireland in the coming year. The budget sets out an overall package of €12.3 billion, with a focus on social welfare, cost of living supports, energy costs, health, education, childcare, housing, environment, climate, transport, and justice
. Some of the main changes and announcements in Budget 2024 include:
- Taxation : A personal tax package worth €1.3 billion, providing about €800 to individual workers
- Social Welfare : Increases to welfare and pension payments, as well as the introduction of a €400 lump sum for selected welfare categories and a double payment of Foster Care Allowance
- Energy Costs : One-off electricity credits of €450 and €300 fuel allowance lump sums for eligible individuals
- Employment and Business : A €200 increase in the Living Alone Allowance and a €300 lump sum for recipients of the Fuel Allowance in the last quarter of the year
- Education : Funding for 740 additional teachers and 1,200 Special Needs Assistants, as well as a €100 qualified child increment lump sum
- Housing : A €12 weekly increase in rent supplements and the extension of the 20% cut in public transport fares for adults for another year
- Health : Increased funding for medical care, including private secondary medical care for military personnel, and additional funding for criminal legal aid fees
- Environment and Climate : The establishment of the Future Ireland Fund, which will have 0.8% of GDP paid annually from 2024 to 2035, with a potential to reach €100 billion by 2035
- Transport : A 20% cut in public transport fares for adults, extended for another year, and additional funding for the Defence Forces modernization
These measures are subject to change as legislation is enacted and finalized
