Business group Ibec has welcomed the "ambitious" scale of investment outlined in Budget 2025, particularly in terms of infrastructure and human capital.
Ibec said the decision to unlock the National Training Fund (NTF), which it said he has long called for, is seen as an important and overdue step towards developing the necessary skills for a modern economy.
"While cost competitiveness challenges remain a concern, Budget 2025 is making the right signals towards a more realistic and sustainable path forward for businesses worried about rising cumulative costs," it said.
Ibec CEO Danny McCoy said that Budget 2025 reflects the "incredible" contribution businesses have made in creating the surplus that is enabling the Government to be ambitious in the type of investment made today.
He noted that in the past five years, corporation tax has contributed €110 billion to the Exchequer, with an expected €40 billion this year alone.
"The rise of digitisation and AI is reshaping industries and creating new opportunities for high-skilled, high-paying jobs. We welcome the urgency to unlock the NTF and we will now work with the Government to ensure it's effectively used to boost businesses and their employees," he said.
He also said that Ireland must remain vigilant in protecting our ability to compete and safeguarding cost competitiveness, especially in light of rising operating costs and changes to labour costs.
Meanwhile, the Small Firms Association said it was pleased that the Government has listened to some of its proposals to support small businesses.
It expressed its concern with the 80 cent increase in the National Minimum Wage to €13.50, but said it welcomed the various measures to support small businesses such as the increased threshold in the R&D tax credit, the two-year extension of the Employment Investment Incentive and the Start-Up Relief for Entrepreneurs.
The increase in the VAT registration thresholds for the supply of goods is another positive step, but said that many of these schemes remain cumbersome for small business owners who do not have the resources of larger firms.
David Broderick, SFA Director, said that Budget 2025 appears to be a mixed bag for small businesses.
"Going forward the Small Firms Association believes that the Government must introduce a more targeted measure like PRSI rebate to assist small businesses with the transition towards the Living Wage rates," he added.
ISME said today it welcomes a number of measures that have been announced for businesses and employees, but added that Budget 2025 was clearly pitched as a general election budget and not as a business budget.
Neil McDonnell, the chief executive of ISME, said the infrastructure spending commitments are welcome, while the commitment to maintain VRT relief on EVs will hopefully ensure that business continues to invest in decarbonising its fleet.
"The commitment to increase spending on training and upskilling in SMEs is welcome, as the national training fund is financed by employers' PRSI, but we have yet to see the detail," he added.
