Ian Guider: We can’t have it both ways on public services and axing the USC

If we truly want Scandinavian levels of living standards and infrastructure, we must be willing to pay for this through increased taxes

Brian Lenihan jr: the money generated from the USC was used to keep the state going, not to bail out banks and bondholders. Picture: Tony O’Shea

Twitter lit up last week with reminders of the various politicians who over the years promised to abolish or reduce the universal social charge. In the wake of the surge in the cost of living the government has been under increasing pressure to do something to alleviate the financial pain so many are facing, possibly by cutting some of the USC rates. It prompted Taoiseach Micheál Martin to tell Matt Cooper on The Last Word ...