Social Justice Ireland, which has taken over the programmes and advocacy projects formerly run by Cori Justice, has urged the Government to move immediately to implement the recommendations of the Commission on Taxation report on tax breaks.
Founded by Fr Seán Healy and Sr Brigid Reynolds, the organisation believes implementing the recommendations would make the tax system fairer.
“It would also provide substantial additional resources which would go quite some distance towards achieving the adjustment Government has proposed for the next Budget,” according to Fr Healy.
The group does not agree with the proposal to tax child benefit. It is also critical of the Commission’s insistence that Ireland's total tax-take should not increase.
“There is no justification for the Commission's conclusion that the total tax-take should not rise. Social Justice Ireland believes that Ireland should remain a low-tax economy but should set a target of 34.9 per cent of GDP for total tax-take. This can be done without increasing income tax rates. A first step in the right direction would be to eliminate the tax breaks that litter Ireland's tax system,” said Fr Healy.