INS IDE
Monday, October 5, 2015
Serving Cork for 120 years
Winners and losers in our road plans: Pages 10&11
Edition No: 36021
RRP: €1.50
Analysis of all the weekend’s big games: See sport
BULLIED TEENAGER SET TO ENJOY MAGICAL TRIP: PAGE 25
PLUS
170 repossession cases GARDAÍ PROBE SUSPICIOUS BLAZE AT DOUGLAS STORE ■ Budget may offer tax relief 170 house repossession cases are due before Cork Circuit Court later this week as calls are made for tax relief to help homeowners with mortgage repayments ahead of next week’s Budget.
■ Padraig Hoare THE owners of Broadale Stores on Maryborough Hill, which was gutted in a fire, have said that they are devastated by their loss. Gardaí are treating as suspicious the blaze which broke out on Saturday night and which is believed to have been started deliberately in a wheelie bin near the premises. The shop opened under new ownership just a year ago and was regarded as a valuable addition to the community. The owners have appealed to anyone with information to contact gardaí. ■ See Page 3 for more.
Firefighers battling the Broadale Stores, Maryborough Hill, fire on Saturday night.
Picture: Eddie O’Hare
CORK CITY THROUGH TO CUP FINAL: SEE ECHO SPORT WEATHER TONIGHT L: 11º
Mainly cloudy with a little rain
9 770332 478112 41
05.10.2015 Recommended retail price € 1.50
For many middle income families affected by job losses and pay cuts in recent years, the biggest squeeze has come in the form of mortgage difficulties as large loans, coupled with growing financial pressures, have forced them into arrears. Eugene Carley from the Cork office of New Beginnings is calling for tax relief to assist homeowners with mortgage repayments in next Tuesday’s Budget. The organisation, which assists people in areas of debt management, personal insolvency and bankruptcy, sup-
2016 ■ Audrey Ellard Walsh ports hundreds of families at risk of losing their homes. “With interest rates being fairly low it doesn’t take an awful lot to get to a position where you can pay enough to hold on to your house. “You can’t get a hand out but if you were getting tax relief on your mortgage interest at least then you’ll have some hope of getting to some type of reasonable repayment.” Meanwhile, it looks like middle income earners may pay less than 50% tax on their earnings after Tuesday’s budget. ■ See Pages 3, 6, 7 and 18 for more.