Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for tabling this amendment. While I understand why Deputies submit requests for reports by way of amendments, I have made the point previously, and will make it again now, that including commitments to produce reports in primary legislation, particularly legislation which is already as complex as the Social Welfare Consolidation Act, is not good practice for us.

I will not be accepting the amendment but I will explain the provisions to which it refers. The actuarial review of the Social Insurance Fund published in March 2023 was a very detailed and comprehensive report, with a wide range of scenarios examined and fully costed. One of its findings was that the fund will experience significant long-term sustainability challenges. This is mainly driven by the challenges Ireland will face in relation to demographics, particularly the ageing of our population. The need to take action now has also been highlighted by the ESRI and the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, IFAC. It is in this context that the Government agreed to a gradual incremental increase in all PRSI rates, including employee, employer and the self-employed from 2024 to 2028. However, in response to cost pressures facing small-and medium-sized businesses, the Government agreed in May to a range of measures to reduce costs for such businesses. This included the increase of the employer PRSI threshold from €441 per week to €496 per week from 1 October. Furthermore, this Bill includes a provision for a further increase in the employer PRSI threshold to €527 per week, effective from January 2025 in parallel to the increase to the national minimum wage in 2025. These measures benefit employers with full-time employees earning the national minimum wage by ensuring the employer is liable for the lower rate of PRSI, currently at 8.9%, rather than the higher rate of 11.15%. This represents a saving of €616 per annum because the limits have been increased. I am satisfied that the approach decided by the Government in relation to PRSI over the next number of years achieves a fair balance between addressing the long-term sustainability of the Social Insurance Fund without unduly impinging on the incomes of workers and the costs of doing business in Ireland. Therefore I am not accepting this amendment to prepare a report on this concept of a tapered PRSI credit on employer PRSI at this stage.

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