What does Budget 2025 mean for Travellers and Roma? 

No funding for the National Traveller Health Action Plan (NTHAP) in Budget 2025 is “disheartening” given the Department of Health’s announcement of  “a record” health budget, says Pavee Point Co-Directors.

In light of the publication of Budget 2025, Pavee Point Traveller and Roma Centre welcomes increased funding to drive forward national equality strategies on Travellers and Roma, LGBTQI+ inclusion and women and girls, as well as additional resourcing of the Traveller and Roma Education Strategy. Increased capital funding for Traveller-specific accommodation is also a positive update. 

The Mental Health budget has been increased by 10%, an additional allocation of €16 million in 2025 will fund initiatives including suicide prevention and Traveller mental health, however Pavee Point are disappointed to see that the National Traveller Health Action Plan (NTHAP) budget has not received further resources.

“No increased funding for NTHAP in Budget 2025 is especially disheartening given the Department of Health’s announcement of  “a record” €25.8 billion health budget. The NTHAP has not received any new additional core funding since its publication in 2022, yet Traveller health inequalities have widened. Traveller organisations and Primary Health Care Projects should not be expected to deliver on this ambitious Plan in the absence of new resources.” said Lynsey Kavanagh, Co-Director, Pavee Point. 

Poverty and child poverty: 

While once off payments to families are welcome, they will not go far enough to address Traveller and Roma child poverty and income inequality. Combating child poverty requires more than once-off double payments and one-off credits. It requires long term measures such as adequate adult welfare rates, decent rates of pay and conditions for working parents, and adequate and more accessible public services.

• There was an 18% increase in child poverty in 2023. 1 in 7 children in Ireland live in poverty. We know from numerous reports that Traveller and Roma children are disproportionately impacted by poverty, which is exacerbated by the need for families to fulfil the Habitual Residence Condition to access social supports.
• Positive measures included in budget 2025 to tackle poverty include targeted measures, such as the increase to core social welfare rates and to qualified child increase – now named the child support payment.
• The expansion of free school books to secondary school students up to the end of the senior cycle is welcomed.
• The extension of hot school meals programmes to all primary schools next year and a number of other measures that will reduce pressure on families struggling with education-related costs.
• There was a missed opportunity in this Budget to introduce a two tier, more targeted child benefit, which would alleviate child poverty.

Accommodation: 

Increased capital funding to support specific categories of need: €23 million has been allocated for Traveller-specific accommodation, an increase of €2 million on Budget 2024. It is important that this funding is used to support development of new units and sites where required given significant overcrowding and homelessness for Traveller families across Ireland. 

Education

The Department  of Education is to provide additional funding for social inclusion programmes including the School Completion Programme, Tusla Education Supports Services, the Traveller and Roma Education strategy and support for out of school education provision.

Health

Mental Health Services – additional allocation of 16 million for 2025 for new initiatives including suicide prevention and Traveller mental health initiatives. It is not clear how much of this budget will be allocated to Traveller mental health, which is beyond crisis point. It is not clear from the Budget that additional funding has been allocated to implement the National Traveller Health Action Plan which has not seen funding since the Plan was launched in 2022.

More information to follow. 

 

Budget 2025: How will it impact on Traveller and Roma families? 

The 2025 budget has a two billion bumper package for cost of living and has been dubbed a “giveaway budget” and an “election budget.” Some measures will benefit Traveller and Roma families in the short term, however, long term actions and improvement to infrastructure is required in order to address ongoing issues in relation to poverty, inequality, and social exclusion.

Tax measures: 

• Reduction in the 4% Universal Social Charge rate to 3%
• Universal Social Charge : Entry level for new 3 per cent rate increased by €1,622 to €27,382
• €125 Increase in the Main Tax Credits

• €2,000 Increase in the Standard Rate Cut-off Point which means that those earning the higher income tax threshold will rise to €44,000

• €150 Increase in the Home Carer Tax Credit
• €150 Increase in the Single Child Carer Credit
• €300 Increase in the Incapacitated Child Tax Credit
• €300 Increase in the Blind person Credit

As a result of the cumulative increases to the main tax credits, a single person earning €20,000 or less in 2025 will now be outside of the income tax net. This means they will not pay tax on their income.

One-off cost of living supports

• €250 electricity credits (2 x €125) 2024/2025
• €300 Fuel Allowance lump sum Winter 2024
• €200 Living Alone Allowance lump sum Winter 2024
• Two double payments of child benefit in the run up to Christmas (€280 per child) Winter 2024
• €400 Working Family Payment lump sum Winter 2024
• €100 Qualified Child Increment lump sum Winter 2024
• Double week for all long-term weekly welfare schemes Winter 2024
• €400 lump sum to selected welfare categories* *payment to recipients of the Carer’s Support Grant, Disability Allowance, Blind pension, Winter 2024
• Double payment of Foster Care Allowance Winter 2024

Social welfare: 

• Pay Related Benefit, which ensures those with stronger working histories receive higher welfare payments if they lose their jobs
• All welfare payments, including pensions, to increase by €12 per week
• Welfare payments: an October bonus double payment  and another welfare Christmas bonus payment

Families and household 

• A payment of €420 for newborns born in 2025 will kick in January
• Free public transport for children under nine from summer 2025. New universal companion pass for people aged over 70 to bring a friend on public transport.

Employment: 

• 80c minimum wage rise from €12.70 to €13.50
• The introduction of the auto-enrolment retirement savings scheme will start from 30 September 2025. This means that you will automatically be enrolled in a pension scheme if you are between 20 and 60, are not currently part of a pension plan, and earn more than €20,000 per year. 

Health:

• Free hormone replacement therapy for those in menopause
• Expansion of IVF scheme to include donor assisted IVF and to to include couples experiencing secondary infertility
• Cigarettes: €1 increase in excise duty on packet of 20, bringing cost to €18.05 from midnight following a Dáil vote on excise duty
• Vaping: Tax to be introduced from mid-2025 of 50c per ml of eliquid, bringing typical price of disposable device to €9.23 including VAT

Education: 

• Wider eligibility for student grants
• Free school books up to Leaving Cert
• 1,500 additional special needs assistants
• 350 more special classes
• Student and apprenticeship fees to decrease by 1000, postgrad contribution to increase
• Junior Cert and Leaving Cert fees waived

 

Accommodation:

• Mortgage interest relief extended
• Inheritance tax thresholds to rise to €400,000
• Extra credits for renters – to increase by €250 to €1000
• Extension of the Help to Buy scheme to 2029