Fine Gael has published a list of measures that it argues the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, should include as a minimum in his annual Budget to be announced tomorrow.

The Fine Gael spokesman on Finance, Mr Michael Noonan, said that to ensure the successful negotiation of a new Partnership Programme, the Government would have to provide "very significant tax reductions" in the Budget.

He said that, over the next two Budgets, Mr McCreevy should aim to exempt from income tax the first £170 of weekly income. Fine Gael argues that no person receiving an income on or below the average industrial wage should be taxed at the higher tax rate.

The party wants the standard income tax rate band extended to £17,500 annually for single people and £35,000 annually for married couples.

On income tax rates Fine Gael has re-stated its preference for the introduction of a new middle tax rate of 35 per cent. The party wants the current 46 per cent top rate retained for the highest five per cent of taxpayers. This top rate would apply to those with an annual income in excess of £50,000 for single people and £100,000 for married couples.

Fine Gael has also set the Government the objective of increasing child benefit by 25 per cent for children under the age of five, with a £25 per week increase to be paid to mothers in respect of all children under that age. The party said it would oppose any move to subject child benefit to tax.

Among the other measures proposed by Fine Gael are a doubling of the Fuel Allowance to £10 per week, the social welfare Christmas Bonus to be increased to 100 per cent for the Millennium and all pensioners over 66 to be given medical cards.