Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

A new regime appropriate to the industry will be discussed with the European Commission.

I also propose to disallow interest on personal loans taken out to acquire shares in, or provide loans to, rental income companies.

Keeping consumer prices down

Regarding indirect taxation, I am proposing, like last year, to leave the main excises and VAT rates as they are. This is a significant Government contribution to keeping inflation down and securing further value for money for the consumer. On top of this the consumer can look forward to lower retail prices for basic grocery items due to the forthcoming removal of the grocery prices order already announced by the Government. Our efforts to increase competition generally also help keep price increases to a minimum.

Home heating fuel

There is a sizable gap in the cost of certain heating oils between here and Northern Ireland. I plan to eliminate the excise difference between the two jurisdictions in the next two years, starting today.

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