No tax cuts in upcoming budget - Harney

Lower earners will benefit from tax concessions following the next Budget, although the base tax rates for higher earners will remain unchanged, the Tánaiste said today.

Ms Mary Harney, speaking on RTÉ radio's This Weekprogramme this afternoon, said the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, would be adopting a "cautious approach" because of the "difficult economic circumstances".

This will not be an "election budget" Ms Harney insisted. "We don’t have the resources to lower the top rates of tax," she said.

She said that her priority was to keep taxes as low as possible to promote employment and also to provide for "those at the very bottom of our society, welfare recipients".

Ms Harney said she wanted to remove as many low-paid workers from the tax bracket as possible.

Budget 2002 will be released on December 5th.