Irish emergency budget, 2009

The 2009 Irish emergency budget refers to the delivery of an emergency government budget by the Government of Ireland on 7 April 2009, its second in six months. It was also the second overall budget to be delivered by Fianna Fáil's Brian Lenihan as Minister for Finance. The emergency budget announcement involved significant tax rises and a decrease in public spending. Prior to its unveiling, it was predicted to be the most severe budget in decades, with The Independent suggesting in its aftermath that it was the most severe in the country's history.

The Irish government budget for 2009 was delivered on 14 October 2008, as the first budget in the tenure of Brian Lenihan as Minister for Finance and the first of the Taoiseach Brian Cowen's tenure. It was brought forward from its usual December date due to the global financial crisis. The budget, labelled "the toughest in many years", included a number of controversial measures such as a proposed income levy which was eventually restructured and the withdrawal of previously promised HPV vaccines for schoolgirls. Other results of the budget included a new income levy being imposed on all workers above a specified threshold and the closure of a number of military barracks near the border with Northern Ireland.

The April 2009 emergency budget introduced a number of new measures. The announcements included:

The cabinet met on the afternoon of 6 April 2009 to finalise the emergency budget. The budget was preceded by an announcement that all twenty of Ireland's Ministers of State were to resign to be replaced by fifteen within a fortnight. A proposal was also announced which would see the transfer of approximately €80–90 billion of bad loans from Irish banks to a new National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) The Department of Transport announced a reduction in funding of €315 million. €150 million would be deducted from the €448 million earmarked for local and regional roads, with a further €150 million deducted from funds set aside for public transport infrastructure. The typical person on the minimum wage of €17,500 per annum would have to pay 2% taxes, a person on €50,000 per annum would have to pay 4% taxes and a person on €300,000 per annum would have to pay 9% taxes.

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