Businesses though have also been suffering as energy, raw materials, labour and other input costs have spiralled upwards at rates not seen for decades.
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. 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 businesses would prefer it was employees themselves and perhaps the Government which would take the bulk of the hit. 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.