Yesterday's Budget was very much focused on compensation. For individuals, there were tax cuts and spending increases to compensate for inflation. For companies, there were measures for firms struggling in the face of rising interest rates and a raft of new labour legislation imposed by Government.

Against this broad backdrop, there were a number of important measures that Dublin Chamber has secured for members that have far reaching consequences, if Government can get the details right. We will be following up on these details with Government in the coming weeks and I welcome any feedback that you have. I outline these important measures we have secured from Government below, together with a copy of our initial reaction to Budget 2024 yesterday, which has been covered by the Business Post and other media this morning.

• Increased investment has been put aside for strategic infrastructure projects such as Metrolink, DART+, and BusConnects in Budget planning out to 2026. In addition, funding for "lumpy" capital projects will be ringfenced in a new €14bn Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund.
• Additional funding was set aside for housing construction, together with a rent relief to keep landlords in the market.
• An additional 25% reduction in childcare fees from September 2024, on top of a similar cut last year, will ensure the continued participation of many working parents in the labour force.
• The commitment to 1000 additional Garda recruits will help counter growing concerns about safety on city streets.
• The R&D Tax Credit has been increased from 25% to 30% and a more robust regime will allow businesses to access much needed funds earlier and more easily.
• A complex 16% rate of Capital Gains Tax is proposed to help firms secure Angel investment. Changes will need to be made in the Finance Bill to make this proposal attractive to this type of investor.
• The Minister for Finance announced that EU approval had been secured for changes announced last year to the Employer Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS) and that these measures would be put in place shortly. The Minister also announced his intention to review and improve the Key Employee Engagement Programme (KEEP) scheme, which provides for share ownership participation by key staff.
• The Increased Cost of Business Scheme will offer once-off grants to equivalent to up to 50% of the commercial rates paid by the firms for those firms with a commercial rates bill of up to €20,000.

Our press release on Budget 2024 can be found here.

Please send any feedback on Budget 2024 to the Public Affairs team at policy@dublinchamber.ie.

Regards,

Aebhric Mc Gibney

Public & International Affairs Director