Ireland's Finance Minister indicated on Sunday that he will bring low income earners into the tax net when presenting December's budget that will seek to find at least 3 billion euros worth of savings. Some 50 percent of Irish workers do not currently pay income tax and with the country tackling the worst budget deficit in the European Union, Brian Lenihan said such a tax system was no longer sustainable.
"The idea that no contribution should be made by any substantial section of the population is not sustainable in the current economic crisis," Lenihan told the Sunday Tribune newspaper in an interview.
"It's something a lot of work has taken place on in my department since last year." Analysts estimate broadening the tax base could bring in some 300 million euros extra a year, just one-tenth of the savings required in this year alone.