Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to have the opportunity to talk on the budget again this evening. It is an anti-rural budget. It is hurting a great many people, especially people in rural Ireland. Anyone with a wheel of any kind is affected. People travelling long distances to work, parents taking children to schools, lorry men transporting items to shops and so on will all face increased costs. Taxi men are hurt. Farmers with jeeps and tractors are going to be hurt. There is no recognition at all of the carbon they sequester. Agricultural contractors are being hurt. Elderly sick people who are trying to heat their homes are being hurt. Many people on benefit payments have been let down. I raised this with the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, the other day. I spoke about people on illness benefit, jobseeker's benefit, enhanced illness benefit, occupational injury benefit and disablement benefit. A pensioner living with a cancer patient who is in receipt of illness benefit does not qualify for the fuel allowance. How can that be fair or right? These people paid their contributions through the PAYE system. They would not be getting the benefit payments if they had not. These people are being left behind and that is totally wrong.

In County Kerry, there were 697 applications to the local improvement scheme. Last year, we got money for 11. This year, we got money for 22. That is not enough. That is not fair. The people in Kerry are entitled to a good road to their door, the very same as the people in Dublin 4. They are paying their taxes, these massive fuel costs and carbon tax. They are paying taxes of every kind. They deserve fair play and they are not getting it.

With regard to the hospitality sector, the VAT rate is to rise from 9% to 13.5%. That will affect all of Kerry. While I welcome the €32 million for school transport, it is only an effort to keep up with the increasing costs. Fishermen and coastal communities have been left behind. Look at what has happened to them. No one fought for their quotas and they are being left behind. That has an effect on coastal communities in their entirety. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donovan, for the allowances he made but I ask him not to forget Kenmare. He was good enough to come down to Kenmare and Killorglin when we asked him to. There are a few other schemes as well which he did not mention tonight. I ask him not to forget them because the people of Kenmare have suffered for long enough.

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