The Taoiseach has said he accepts that the proportion of taxation coming from corporation tax is a concern.

Micheál Martin was speaking after Exchequer returns yesterday revealed that corporation tax had risen again in August, up by one third on the same time last year to €2.8 billion.

“It is a concern, because we have to be very mindful of the fact that quite a significant amount of that may be windfall, may be once off and may not be there forever,” Mr Martin told RTÉ News.

“Parallel with that, our public expenditure has grown very, very significantly since 2020, particularly the onset of Covid and the unprecedented interventions we’ve made, so it’s at a higher plateau now, public expenditure, than it would have been prior to that era,” he said.

Mr Martin said it was important that some of the corporation tax was aside for the Government’s Future Ireland Fund, to deal with Ireland’s ageing population and increasing healthcare costs.

He said some of the corporation tax take is also being used to deliver large scale infrastructure projects.

“What I would say to balance the fact that we are, yes, depending – overly dependent – on corporation tax revenues, we are using it for the productive sector, so it’s the productive capacity of the economy,” Mr Martin said.

“So we’re investing in an unprecedented way in infrastructure, which is necessary for future economy, future society.

“And so, for example, the metro is a key, the Cork commuter rail project, is another example of fairly mega infrastructure projects that will have a transformative impact on climate, decarbonisation, and in terms of a growing population,” he added.

Mr Martin was speaking in Co Cork, where he opened a new extension to Kinsale Community School.

In relation to the Budget, Mr Martin noted that public expenditure was rising above profiles set for individual government departments. He said value for money was needed.

He confirmed that a package of income tax reductions, a package to assist families with the cost of childcare and measures to relieve the costs associated with disability are being looked at. He said these would be the target of the Budget.