Here's what we know from Budget 2022

Budget 2022 has been described as an investment in our future as the government attempts to tackle the rising cost of living.

Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe todau signaled the end of pandemic politics and a return to a normal budget.

Here are some of the main measures announced:

Free GP care is being made available for children aged 6 and 7.

The price of cigarettes and fossil fuels has gone up as welfare payments get a boost from the Government.

A 5 euro rise across the board in social welfare payments and the pension is offset by increasing carbon taxes.

Income tax rates have been changed to increase the point at which people will pay the higher rate.

Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty, paraphrasing Winston Churchill, has described Budget 2022 as a con job,.

Other standout measures include price freezes for childcare, while a range of meaures are set to specifically benefit young people.

A few bits in this budget for young people

- half price public transport up to age 24
- PSRI changes for easier access to some benefits
- minimum wage hike
- SUSI grant increase
- free contraception

Feels like Govt bid to stem the tide of young voters heading for Sinn Féin

— Seán Defoe (@SeanDefoe) October 12, 2021

Ministers resisted the urge to splurge with a smaller than expected deficit, sticking largely to the well-leaked plan.

Roundup

Bauer Media Political Correspondent Seán Defoe has joined iRadio in the Afternoon to go through the main points of Budget 2022.

He says it gives a little to a lot of people.

"If you're on any sort of social welfare payment you're going to get an increase of €5 a week. Pretty much every state payment went up by at least €5 a week, some of them by €10, for a back to school allowance there. The state pension obviously has gone up as well."

Seán says the government has also tried to put in a few sweeteners for younger people in this budget.

"One of them is really interesting, is that there will be half price public transport for people aged between 19 and 23 from the middle of next year, so that'll cover any state backed transport.

"There's also going to be free contraception for the first time provided in Ireland for women aged between 17 and 25. That seems like a bit of a weird cutoff point but we're talking to people in government [and] they say the intention is to expand that over the coming years.  The impression was from different working groups and advisory bodies that women in that age group are more likely to use contraception and probably need greater access to it."

We recently saw the publication of the Housing For All plan, which sets out measures relating to housing over the next five to ten years.  Seán says today's Budget hasn't given much to renters.

"A lot of it is future investments rather than something that's straight away. I asked someone quite senior in the government, why is there not more for renters? Their answer was "what exactly could we do? If we intervene directly in the way that we did with the health supply, we run the risk of increasing rents the same way that did increase house prices."

You can listen to Dave and Fionnuala's full chat with Seán Defoe here.