Eoghan Harris (Independent)

I welcome the change in the universal social charge. Fortunately, I do not have to go for election and therefore I can speak for a group that does not have a big populist push behind it. I refer to sole traders. The reduction for medical card holders is reasonable but the increased 10% for the self-employed and sole traders on incomes over €100,000 is unfair because they are the group with impaired loans that they are finding difficult to pay back. For example, they must pay back capital on after tax income which means they have only 45% left for repayment. Based on that it would take a small business nearly €220,000 to pay back a capital loan of €100,000.

Small business does not need any more tax burdens. I do not know if the European Union will allow it. The Germans are trying to interfere with such changes but with the foreign investment sector, these sole traders are the engine that will power our recovery and everything that can be done to make life a little easier for them should be done.