As part of Dublin Chamber’s pre-Budget lobby, we met with the Department of Enterprise at the beginning of this month to outline our key priorities, particularly around enterprise taxation. Central to our proposals is our call to cut Capital Gains Tax (CGT) to 20% to improve startup funding and support entrepreneurial risk-taking. We also highlighted the need for a more streamlined tax system to help position Ireland, and Dublin, as a magnet for founders and entrepreneurs. We look forward to further engaging with other relevant departments ahead of the annual budget process.
On 9th April, Dublin Chamber launched its new report ‘Dublin: Economic Profile and Competitiveness’ at Leinster House, where we were joined by a number of Oireachtas officials including Cormac Devlin TD, James Geoghegan TD, Shane Moynihan TD, Paul Donnelly TD and Senator Mary Fitzpatrick, amongst others. With the Irish Government committed to focusing on the area of competitiveness, our report highlights key areas of opportunity and challenge that will shape Dublin’s future as an attractive business hub. We will continue to meet with officials across the different political parties over the coming weeks to discuss the findings of our report.
This month, Dublin Chamber made a submission to the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) consultation on its Non-Domestic Water Tariff Framework. While Dublin Chamber supports initiatives lead by the CRU to improve Ireland’s water infrastructure, we urged a phased implementation, especially for SMEs, and called for a review of the harmonised tariff framework to ensure that regional economic disparities are not exacerbated. Our submission can be read in full here.
Dublin Chamber also submitted its response on the Department of Transport’s Statement of Strategy 2025 this month. In our submission, we reaffirmed our support for critical transport projects like BusConnects, the Greater Dublin Area Cycling Plan, MetroLink, DART+, Luas expansion, and the Dublin City Centre Transport Plan. We stressed the need for immediate and sustained investment in these critical transport projects and a clear, time-bound implementation roadmap. We also called for the publication of a Strategic Infrastructure Plan and stronger alignment between transport delivery and housing development to support compact growth. Read our submission here.
In addition to the above, Dublin Chamber met with the Department of Foreign Affairs this month to discuss the impact of escalating global trade tensions on the business community. We highlighted the perceived impact of recent changes in U.S. tariff policy on Dublin-based firms and emphasised the need for government-led support to help businesses navigate these uncertain times and remain agile.