NO CASE FOR CUTTING SOCIAL WELFARE RATES, claims Cllr. Darren Ryan.
Issued : Tuesday 11 August, 2009
”The indication today that one third of the €3bn package of cuts in Government spending will come from the welfare budget is very alarming. The suggestion that basic welfare rates should be cut by five per cent is of particular concern.” Says Labour Cllr. Darren Ryan.
The Labour Party does not believe that there is any case for cutting these basic rates that are, in most cases, at or barely above subsistence levels.
Justifying a cut by linking social welfare to the rate of inflation is disingenuous. The recent drop in the Consumer Price Index has been driven primarily by falls in mortgage interest rates, but many of those claiming welfare, are not in a position to enjoy that fall. Meanwhile, the cost of clothing and footwear and of transport, have all increased this year.
”Many of those now beating the drum to cut the paltry incomes of those on social welfare are the same people who have defended tax breaks for the wealthy over the years.”
Labour is not burying its head in the sand when it comes to the state of our public finances, and there is no doubt that an open and honest debate, as to how we will get out of the mess created by successive Fianna Fail led Governments, is required.
We recognise that, as social welfare constitutes such a significant proportion of overall public spending any government has to ensure that the taxpayers are getting value for money spent supporting those in need. We certainly need to take additional steps to totally eliminate social welfare fraud; we need to cut out duplication and review schemes that may be ineffective or involve waste.
Of course the single most effective way to reduce the cost of social welfare would be to get people back to work, and I fear that the jobs subsidy scheme announced last week by Tanaiste Mary Coughlan will prove to be wholly inadequate in this regard.
