Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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68. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will give detailed consideration to a document produced by a national organisation (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40057/25]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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I am aware that the Restaurants Association of Ireland have recently published their Pre-Budget Submission for Budget 2026. Among the proposals raised by the Association include: a reduction in the Hospitality VAT rate to 9%; linking National Minimum Wage (NMW) to inflation for 2026; and a reduction in the employer PRSI rate of 8.9 per cent to 4.45 per cent for a one-year period.

The Programme for Government (PfG) 2025: Securing Ireland’s Future sets out a number of commitments in these areas. With regards to VAT and PRSI, the following commitment is noted: “The Government will bring forward measures to support SMEs, in particular the retail and hospitality sectors, acknowledging the increased cost pressures on these sectors and this will entail changes to VAT, PRSI and other measures. These measures will be implemented as part of the normal budget process.” I welcome the commitments made in the Programme for Government and believe that they have the potential to be of significant benefit to Irish businesses and the State’s competitiveness agenda.

With regards to the NMW, the Programme for Government recognises “the work of the independent Low Pay Commission, ensuring fair wages whilst also supporting the viability of small and medium-sized enterprises.” The Low Pay Commission’s recommendation for the 2026 National Minimum Wage must be submitted to the my Department this month, and will be considered by Government in the context of Budget 2026.

As part of a suite of measures designed to mitigate increasing business costs and support competitiveness, the Government recently agreed to extend the implementation timeline for the Living Wage (to 2029) and to halt the further roll-out of the Statutory Sick Leave scheme.

My officials and I regularly engage with other Government Departments and Ministerial colleagues on matters of Budgetary policy. Ultimately, however, any changes to the PRSI rate and the VAT rate are a matter for the Minister for Social Protection and the Minister for Finance, respectively.