The Finance Minister has just revealed how the government plans to spend our money for the coming year.
Paschal Donohoe's overall package is worth around €1.5 billion.
Here are the main points from this afternoon's announcement:
Housing
-A total €2.3 billion to next year's housing programme. €1.25 billion to deliver 10,000 new social homes in 2019.
-100% mortgage interest relief on any loan used to pay for a rental property from next year.
-100 million affordable housing fund to help local authorities deliver affordable housing - increasing to 310 over three years. Eligible to people on 50,000 euro a year for single person or 75,000 for couple. Will knock up to €50,000 off price of a house
-An extra €121m for the Housing Assistance Payment to provide for 16,760 tenancies next year.
-€60m increase in capital funding to fund emergency accommodation. €30m extra for homelessness services
Rainy Day Fund
-A rainy day fund is to be set up with €1.5 billion from Strategic Investment Fund and €500 million from exchequer starting in 2019
Education
-Extra €196 million for capital spending in education to create 18,000 new permanent school places, upgrade ICT and invest 150 million in higher education
Miscellaneous
-The price of a pack of 20 cigarettes is to go up by 50c. Minimum excise on tobacco products to rise so that all cigarettes sold below 11 euro will have same excise as more expensive ones
-The price of a pint won't go up
-There'll be a 5 euro increase in all social welfare payments from next March. The Christmas bonus to social welfare recipients will also be restored to 100 per cent
-Two extra weeks' parental leave to all parents of a child under one
Tax
-Entry level for higher rate of income tax increasing by €750 to €35,300
-The third rate of the Universal Social Charge has been cut from 4.75% to 4.5%.
-Corporation tax to remain unchanged at 12.5 per cent
Health
-The health budget will be brought to €17 billion and free GP care extended to an extra 100,000 people.
-An extra €84 million has been dedicated to mental health services.
