Women’s Council Calls on Brian Lenihan to Ease Financial Pressure on Women in 2009

Published: Thursday, October 02, 2008

By simply redistributing current resources Brian Lenihan could ease financial pressure on Women in Budget 2009

The National Women's Council of Ireland (NWCI) is calling on Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan TD to recognise the financial pressure being placed on women in the current economic crisis due to the increasing costs of family expenditure and to recognise the risk of poverty for older women.

Speaking ahead of the Government's second budget meeting this Sunday, Orla O'Connor, Head of Policy, NWCI stated: 'There is a strong need for women to be supported in this Budget, so that they do not have to bear the burden of these difficult economic times'.

The NWCI is highlighting two areas in which the Government does not necessarily have to increase spending in Budget 2009, but rather by redistributing resources, they could make a positive impact on the lives of women and families around the country.

The first area is childcare: in 2007, the Government spent approximately €406 million on the Early Childcare Supplement. 'A large proportion of Government expenditure is going towards this payment, while the NWCI have found that the payment is actually making very little difference to the overall childcare costs for parents - but if the Government were to redistribute these resources it could go towards the creation of free childcare places , which the NWCI has been recommending for some time ' Ms O'Connor continued.

The NWCI highlighted the issues of pensions as the second area where the government could redistribute resources to prioritise issues for women. A particular priority for the NWCI is the position of older women, who need support now more than ever to ensure that they have a decent standard of living in their older years. The NWCI is recommending increases to the state pension and the introduction of 'retrospective justice' for older women who left employment to care for their families and find themselves now with no entitlement to a state pension.

Ms O'Connor continued; 'Currently the Government spend €2.9 billion on tax reliefs for private pensions. If tax reliefs were provided only at the standard rate of tax, 20%, the Government could redistribute this money and increase state pensions by €50 per week. This is a clear example of how the Government can redistribute resources to protect the most vulnerable in our society.'

'Budget 2009 will show if the Government is willing to protect women who have contributed significantly to economic growth and now need to be supported so as not to bear the burden of these difficult economic times' she concluded.