Government to hike price of cigarettes to €20 in Budget 2027 as update issued on alcohol tax amid consumption plummet

SMOKERS will be fuming as the Budget looks set to push the price of a pack of ciggies to €20.

But the tax on alcohol will not be touched by Finance Minister Simon Harris.

Instead, an increase is due to be slapped on a pack of ­cigarettes when the Budget is announced on October 7.

Successive governments have increased taxes on fags by €3.25 over the past five years, with a pack of 20 now costing €19.50.

And The Irish Sun on Sunday understands the Tanaiste is minded to continue this trend, which is expected to push the price of a box to a hefty €20.

Earlier this week, a report claimed alcohol consumption is plummeting, with Irish people now drinking in line with the European average.

The amount of alcohol guzzled by Irish people has fallen 35 per cent in the past 25 years, the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland report found.

France, Spain, Poland and ­several other European countries consume more alcohol than us.

The report led to calls from publicans for a ten per cent cut in excise duties on alcohol in Budget 2027 to boost our pubs.

However, the Coalition are planning to leave excise taxes on alcohol untouched in the Budget.

A source said: “No one wants to be the ­Minister that put up the price of a pint so there is no appetite to go near alcohol at all.”

Last year, the Government introduced the first ever tax on e-cigarettes, with Taoiseach Micheal Martin labelling vapes “the revenge of the tobacco industry.”

The European Commission is now working on proposals to tax puffers across the EU, with the Government unlikely to increase our levy on vapes until there is a clarity on the European strategy.