In all the many discussions, debates and analysis of the inflation problem over the past year or so, the focus has more often than not been on its impact on households, for obvious reasons.
Businesses though have also been suffering as energy, raw materials, labour and other input costs have spiralled upwards at rates not seen for decades.
What's spoken about even less (perhaps out of politeness due to the support it offered the business sector during the pandemic) is that a growing number of these costs are now being driven by Government actions.
Increases in the minimum wage, coupled with the introduction of a statutory sick pay entitlement, the incoming pension auto-enrolment, additional rights for employees around the birth of their child, have all or soon will add expense for businesses.
For most large businesses, while inconvenient, such additional expense is manageable, absorbable.
But for many small and medium sized firms, it is simply not and threatens to drag them down.
According to Ibec, the cumulative effects could potentially add 25% to labour costs over the next three years, on top of regular pay increases driven by productivity and the economic backdrop.
Add to this the fact that around 60,000 businesses collectively owe just shy of €1.9 billion to Revenue in warehoused pandemic-era taxes and you soon begin to see the nexus of the problem.
Today the Government attempted to stem the rising discontent about the situation by announcing a new €250m Increased Cost of Business Scheme in the Budget.
It will give up to 131,000 small and medium sized enterprises who pay €20,000 or less in commercial rates up to 50% back in a payment next year.
The aim is to make its delivery simple - far simpler than the Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme - which ended up being ignored by many due to the administration involved.
Ibec says while it is a move in the right direction, €250m won't go far across the many sectors, particularly as those costs get embedded in the system.
But the Irish Small and Medium Sized Enterprises organisation has already pointed out that what its giving with one hand, the Government is taking away with the other, through the 12% increase in the minimum wage to €12.70 also announced today.
It says the Increased Cost of Business Scheme will provide average payments of €1,923 per business, which is €1,305 below the increase a minimum wage worker will be entitled to each year.
Another business cost coming down the line as a result of the Budget, which won't be welcome, will be the 0.1% increase in PRSI next October.
Pre-budget leaks had suggested that the Government was looking at potentially increasing PRSI.
It is more or less universally recognised that social insurance contributions will have to increase in the coming years to pay for the projected cost of an ageing population.
But businesses would prefer it was employees themselves and perhaps the Government which would take the bulk of the hit.
Government sources have tried to dress up the fact that the first increase will not now be implemented until October next year and will only be 0.1% as a demonstration of its pro-enterprise credentials.
But businesses are smart enough to recognise this is the thin end of the wedge and as the State is forced to up its provision for future pension costs, further larger increases in PRSI will only follow.
More positively received though have been the various measures announced to encourage investment in startups and to reward entrepreneurs and investors for being brave.
The startup community has long argued that Ireland's policies and measures do not provide enough support to those who want to start and scale a firm.
Today Scale Ireland described the Budget announcements around the R&D tax credit, capital gains for angel investors, the Employment Investment Incentive Scheme and Key Employee Engagement Programme as a "big boost for Irish start-up and scaling companies."
Elsewhere, the increase in the VAT registration thresholds will also be seen as a good thing, as will the continuation and increased cap in the Section 481 Film Tax Credit for a sector that is thriving on the back of the tax break.
But the failure of the Government to entertain calls from the tourism and hospitality sector for restore the 9% reduced VAT has left that sector dissatisfied.
While though they won't be surprised by it, the three main Irish banks equally won't be happy with the more than doubling of the banking levy from €87m to €200m next year.
The industry's argument is that the banking landscape has changed significantly since the levy was introduced, with the number of retail banks here decreasing from 12 to five, two of which are also exiting the Irish market.
Banking and Payments Federation Ireland also points to the Government strategy to return the banks to private ownership, having recovered 94% of its original investment during the financial crash bailouts.
"The arbitrary nature of the increase in the levy introduced in today's budget risks Ireland’s reputation as a stable, consistent and transparent tax regime," it said.
And so, in keeping with budgets before it, Budget 2024 seems to offer a little for most in the business sector.
But has certainly not garnered universal approval from all.
