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On Saturday the Labour party launched its plan for regional development ahead of this year’s general election.
As well as promising extra support for young and small-scale farmers, the plan commits to a new social enterprise scheme to rejuvenate rural villages and towns. This €5m scheme, funded from the local property tax, will facilitate the reopening of key main street facilities such as pubs and shops in rural communities.
The plan also commits to an increase in the number of gardaí in rural Ireland.
The plan’s headline figure, however, is a €200m investment in key regional growth centres. This money will be invested in areas of major employment and population growth potential.
“Our focus will be on developing corridors of economic growth across the island,” the party says.
Commitment to young and small-scale farmers
Expanding on its commitment to young farmers, the party says Labour’s goal is to “significantly increase State support” for the training and upskilling of young farmers.
“We will roll out training courses through Teagasc to better equip our young farmers with essential agri-business management skills to give them the best possible start in farming," the plan says.
For the small-scale producers, Labour wants to increase the number of places on the Rural Social Scheme (RSS) by 10% and ensure it includes "an upskilling element to boost the skills potential of participating farmers".
The RSS is a Department of Social Protection scheme aimed at low-income farmers who are already getting a social welfare payment. In return for a top-up payment through the RSS, people participating in the scheme provide services that benefit rural communities.
Forestry
The party also wants to expand the Forestry Programme to support the planting of over 43,000ha of new forests. This will involve providing afforestation grants for new planting and annual payments to farmers who convert areas of their land to forestry.
Taxes for self-employed
Labour is promising to improve on the tax changes it brought in for the self-employed in last year’s budget. In 2015, the coalition government introduced an earned income tax credit of €550 for the self-employed.
The party promises that, if re-elected into government this month, it will increase the earned income tax credit to €1,650 by 2018.
This will bring self-employed trading and professional income into line with PAYE workers.
The party also plans to abolish the Universal Social Charge (USC) surcharge of 3% on income over €100,000 for the self-employed, bringing the USC top rate to 8% for everyone in this income bracket.
Speaking at the launch of the plan, Joan Burton, Tánaiste and leader of the Labour party, said she understands the “devastating effect that the economic collapse inflicted” on rural Ireland.
“Over the last five years, Labour has made a steady start in ending the crisis and beginning to fix many of the problems. And we are determined to continue that work – rejuvenating towns and villages, the lifeblood of rural Ireland,” she said.
Martin Ferris, agriculture spokesperson for opposition party Sinn Féin, criticised the policy launch, saying the Labour party is "five years too late with its plan for rural development". Deputy Ferris also criticised the policy document as “being completely election oriented”.
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