In a response document the 28 member coalition urged the Government and the Social Partners to avoid addressing shorter term but very serious financial problems in a manner that puts even greater stress on the fundamental ecosystem services that allow us to thrive as a race on this small planet. The continuing success of human society and social systems depends fundamentally on the preservation of the overall productivity, health and long term sustainability of the ecosystems and environmental services that underpin and supply many of the most basic components of human welfare such as healthy soils, clean water, a stable climate and clean air.
The 28 national environmental organisations outlined five main areas where government could improve the situation both in the short and long term, and are calling for the social partners and government to focus their efforts on these proposals including:
* creation of long term employment in the transport sector through diverting funding from road building to public transport ;
* supporting the building sector through the €1 billion per year home insulation scheme which will bring stability to domestic fuel bills;
* minimizing spending cuts;
* broadening the tax base to increase overall tax take and improve fairness;
* the focus of new sources of revenue to be both environmentally and socially sustainable, such as levies on land value and pollution
The coalition members are not convinced that current spending by Government needs to be cut to the degree that is being proposed. A broadening of the tax base and an increase in the overall tax take will go a long way towards filling the gap in the finances. The tax system also needs to be more equitable.
New sources of revenue must include: a land value tax; taxes on environmental “bads” such as green house gas emissions, waste, packaging, toxic and hazardous materials etc; and taxes on the private use/abuse of public resources, such as water and the air. In the proposal they assert that taxation based on non-cyclical sources is more likely to create a stable long term base for Government spending.
They assert that the corporate knowledge and wealth of experience of the staff in the public authorities is not something that should be discarded lightly, and the impact on the flow of money caused by cutting jobs would be very serious in both the short and the long term. In a tight fiscal situation it makes no sense to be paying out on early retirements and redundancies.
For further informaion please contact Danny Walsh, communications officer IEN.
tel: 086 8127139
email: dan...@ien.ie
