The Minister for Finance has warned that any tax breaks in the next Budget will have to be paid for elsewhere in the system.

Michael Noonan says that although the Budget won't be as harsh as originally planned, any cuts to income tax or the Universal Social Charge will have to be made up elsewhere.

The minister was speaking as 'Budget season' comes into view - with the Dáíl announcements now just 39 days away.

Labour ministers are keen to look at some sort of wage hike, while FIne Gael ministers are keen to put more money in peoples' pockets through cutting taxes - most likely a cut to the Universal Social Charge, or perhaps raising the bar for people to fall into the higher bracket of income tax.

But today the minister warned the public not to expect too much from the Budget - because anything he gives back to the average worker, he'll have to take away through some other means.

Asked if there was any reason for struggling households to be hopeful of concessions, he said: "We won't have to do a lot now, because we got a lot of extra taxes in."

This was a reference to the news that €2 billion of austerity measures won't be needed, because of how the State is taking in more tax than it expected when the last Budget was announced,

But, he warned, "If we have any tax relief it'll have to be paid for elsewhere in the system.

"There's nothing unusual about that. When I reduced the VAT [on tourist-related industries] from 13.5% to 9% it had to be paid for as well.

"And when I brought in tax relief for home extensions last year... that had to be paid for elsewhere."

The minister also commented on the housing crisis - and said that while the crisis is easing, he needs the banks to do their part too.

He says the effects of the crash are still being felt - because builders simply don't have the money to get going on new projects.

"Your typical builder, when things were going well, he borrowed 60-65% [of his costs] from the bank, but he needed equity as well," the minister explained.

"And [the builder] got equity off the last successful housing estate he built. Now there's no equity because the builders don't have it any more.

"Now NAMA is providing part of the equity, but we'd like the banks to help, to provide some equity as well."

The minister also pointed out that the area in Swords where some people have been queueing for days - to secure one of the 60 houses being launched this weekend - is actually zoned for 1500 homes.

He says if banks were willing to lend to builders, the housing crisis could be significantly eased.