
Weight tax for SUVs now on the table for Budget 2026 as strategy papers offer a glimpse at potential measures
Today at 00:30
A tax on family SUVs is being considered among a number of options ahead of Budget 2026.
A weight penalty, similar to one already in place in France, has been flagged in the tax strategy papers published this week.

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Irish Examiner
15 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
EU's von der Leyen: 15% the 'best we could get'
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen defended the trade deal clinched with United States on Sunday as "the best we could get." A 15% baseline tariff will now apply to all EU exports to the US, with the union agreeing to buy up $750bn worth of US energy and to invest $600bn into the US economy in the years ahead. The deal prevents a massive trade war between the US and the EU. Asked if she considered 15% a good deal for European carmakers, von der Leyen told reporters: "15% is not to be underestimated, but it is the best we could get." The EU committed to purchasing $750 billion worth US Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and nuclear fuel over three years. "We still have too much Russian LNG that is coming through the back door," she said. The European Commission has proposed phasing out all Russian gas imports by January 2028. "Today's deal creates certainty in uncertain times, delivers stability and predictability," von der Leyen told reporters before leaving Scotland. Government sources, while welcoming the deal, were cautious and said they would need to see the finer details of the agreement. One senior source said 'nobody was jumping with joy' over the deal due to baseline tariffs, but that it did provide certainty to businesses. Read More Trade war averted as Government cautiously welcomes EU-US deal


Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Wicklow Gaelscoil faces loss of teacher because it is ‘only one pupil short of the threshold'
Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow, John Brady, has called on the government to intervene to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio in Gaelscoileanna and to prevent the loss of a teacher from Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh, in Bray, this September. 'Following the crash in 2011, the government made the damaging decision to increase the pupil-teacher ratio in Gaelscoileanna, under the guise of aligning them with English-medium schools,' Deputy Brady said. 'This policy shift has had long-term consequences, and now we see those consequences play out locally in Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh, which is being forced to lose a teacher because they are only one pupil short of the threshold. It is disgraceful and deeply unfair,' he said. Deputy Brady said he has repeatedly raised the issue with the Education Minister Helen McEntee, but the Department has refused to consider exceptional circumstances, despite the significant impact this decision will now have on the school community, something he described as 'completely unacceptable'. 'I have been in contact with the Minister for Education, but despite the very clear case put forward by the school and community, there is a total unwillingness to show any flexibility. The result is that the children are being punished, staff are being stretched, and the quality of the education is being compromised', he said. The Wicklow TD also highlighted the 'hypocrisy at the heart of government claims' to support the Irish language and expand opportunities for Irish-medium education, while 'failing to back that rhetoric with real investment or meaningful policy change'. 'The Programme for Government set a target of 19:1 pupil teacher ratio for primary schools. But the reality in classrooms, particularly in many Gaelscoileanna, is worlds apart. Schools are overcrowded, under-resourced and under constant pressure. The decision to strip Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh of a teacher shows just how little regard this Government has for Irish-medium schools and for the children who attend them,' he said. He also criticised what he described as 'the ongoing failure of successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments' to tackle staffing issues in Gaelcholaistí, pointing to Coláiste Ráithín, in Bray, as an example of a school facing persistent difficulties. 'Year after year, Coláiste Ráithín is left scrambling to fill teaching posts due to staff shortages beyond their control. It is a repeated cycle that the Government refuses to fix. They 'talk the talk' regarding the Irish language, but when it comes to real support for the schools delivering Irish-language education, they vanish. It is a fantastic school, and they should not have this constant worry,' he said. He said that unless the Government reinstates the previous, lower pupil-teacher ratio for Gaelscoileanna and immediately intervenes to prevent the loss of staff at Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh, they will continue to fail children, parents and communities who recognise the value of Irish-medium education. 'If the government is serious about investing in children's education, about supporting the Irish language, and about giving real choice to families as to where they send their children to school, they must act now,' he concluded.


Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Delay of law proposal adds to uncertainty around redress for clerical abuse survivors
A proposal for a law that would allow religious organisations to be held liable for abuse by their members will not be considered by the Government until 2027 at the earliest. Many religious organisations are unincorporated bodies. This means they as entities cannot be sued and their assets may be beyond the reach of the courts if and when one of their members are found liable for damages against child sex abuse survivors. Individual members of such religious bodies can face legal action, but case law shows it can be difficult to legally pursue the organisation itself for redress. There are concerns about how the State will recoup redress funds from religious bodies for a scheme being considered for survivors of sexual abuse in schools. READ MORE If set up, it would likely be the largest and most expensive redress scheme in the history of the State. Since 2022, the Law Reform Commission (LRC) has been considering whether the Government should legislate to give unincorporated associations, such as voluntary religious orders, their own legal personality or set out another way by which they may be held liable. Minister for Education Helen McEntee has said: 'The Government will review any recommendations made by the commission in its final report, with a view to introducing any necessary legislative or administrative changes in due course.' However, a spokesman for the LRC said its report on changing the legal status of bodies such as religious organisations will not be ready before the end of next year. 'The report about the liability of unincorporated associations is being scoped at present. We do not yet have a completion date but we do not expect it to be published before the end of 2026,' the spokesman said. Labour Party leader Ivana Bacik has expressed concern about whether a delay in progressing such a law would stymie the ability of the Government to access religious organisations' assets, or the lay-run trusts that their assets may have been transferred to. Ms Bacik said her party is trying to bring forward a Bill that would allow civil proceedings to be taken against unincorporated bodies like religious orders. It would allow any damages awarded in such cases to be recovered from a religious organisation or from 'associated' trusts. The same law, if passed, would also add a one-year extension to the normal limitation period provided for in the statutes of limitations. The Labour Party leader said this was to allow any proceedings that the Bill would cover to be brought within 12 months of it being enacted. She recently personally handed a copy of the Bill to the Attorney General. Given the upcoming Commission of Investigation into historic abuse in schools, the Government cannot afford to 'sit back and wait' for the LRC report to finish, she said.