As Budget 2025 approaches, the Government is attempting to shape its economic strategy amid growing discontent about its handling of critical issues like housing, healthcare, and poverty. Despite promises of reform and investment, Ireland is grappling with some of the worst crises in its history. From a housing disaster that has pushed thousands into homelessness to a healthcare system buckling under pressure, Budget 2025 feels like an attempt to paper over deep structural cracks. Budget 2025: Facing the Realities of a Broken System
1. Spiraling Public Spending with Little Progress
The Government’s announcement of an additional €8.3 billion in spending and tax measures might sound impressive on paper, but it raises the question: where has all the money been going? Despite years of record spending, especially in public services like healthcare, the results are alarming.
For instance, €1.5 billion more is expected to be allocated to the health service, yet Ireland already spends more on public healthcare than almost any other country in Europe. Despite this, over 1 million people remain on waiting lists, with many waiting months, if not years, for essential treatments. The system is not just strained—it’s broken. Throwing more money at the problem without addressing inefficiency, bureaucracy, and mismanagement will not fix what is fundamentally flawed.
2. Housing Crisis Worsens
The housing crisis continues to spiral out of control, with over 200,000 children living in poverty and countless families struggling to find or keep homes. The Government’s housing policies, including Help-to-Buy schemes, are seen as exacerbating the problem rather than solving it. These schemes, intended to help first-time buyers, have largely benefited wealthier individuals, driving house prices even higher as demand rises without sufficient supply.
The Government’s focus on these types of schemes has done little to increase the availability of affordable housing. Meanwhile, public housing projects remain stalled, and homelessness figures are at record highs. Expanding Help-to-Buy programs in Budget 2025 would only perpetuate the very conditions that have led to the current disaster—making homeownership a distant dream for many.
3. Failing to Address Child Poverty
Despite record tax receipts, Ireland’s most vulnerable continue to suffer. Reports have highlighted that over 230,000 children experience material deprivation, unable to afford basic necessities like adequate clothing, food, and warmth. Yet the Government’s focus seems to be on maintaining the status quo rather than addressing the root causes of child poverty.
Child Benefit increases, while welcome, are not enough to offset the rising cost of living, especially as the Government refuses to implement targeted, means-tested measures that could truly help struggling families. Once again, Budget 2025 may offer minor relief, but it’s unlikely to reverse the entrenched poverty that continues to affect hundreds of thousands of children.
4. Missed Opportunities for Tax Reform
The proposed €1.4 billion tax package is expected to include some relief for middle-income earners, but it’s unlikely to go far enough. Calls for substantial changes to the Universal Social Charge (USC) and adjustments to income tax brackets may offer marginal benefits, but these tweaks are insufficient to address the broader economic challenges facing most households.
While tax cuts are politically popular, they are far from the bold reforms needed to create a fairer and more equitable system. Instead of real tax reform, the Government seems content to offer superficial changes that may win votes but won’t fundamentally improve people’s living standards.
Conclusion
Budget 2025 feels like yet another exercise in managing the symptoms rather than addressing the causes of Ireland’s deepening crises. From a housing market in freefall to a healthcare system overwhelmed by inefficiency, the Government continues to announce spending increases without meaningful results.
Without a radical shift in how funds are allocated and managed, Ireland’s most vulnerable—its children, its low-income families, its homeless—will continue to suffer. The Government’s record on these issues is clear: more money, more promises, and fewer results. Budget 2025 needs to be more than just a rehash of failed policies; it needs to be a turning point. But given the Government’s track record, it’s hard to feel optimistic.
Budget 2025: Facing the Realities of a Broken System