Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Yes, but this is about the argument about the USC. The figures show that Germany and Sweden, the two economies that have proved most resilient in the face of the current recession, have much higher rates of income tax, particularly for higher earners. They have not seen the dramatic collapse of growth or rise in unemployment that we have. There is a serious argument for shifting tax policy in the direction we have laid out in the interests of fairness and a more sustainable economic model.