Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. Representatives of Chambers Ireland, the Small Firms Association and the Irish Business and Employers Confederation will address the committee later this afternoon, after this part of the meeting has concluded. They will tell us that taxation is satanic and that the measures being proposed will strangle the economy, etc. Other people like to use the word "fraud" as often as they can during discussions on social welfare in order to undermine the social welfare budget.

The first of my two main questions relates to the long-term structural tackling of poverty, for example, by means of preschool provision. We need to tackle things like maternal depression, educational disadvantage and illiteracy. What can we do in this budget to tackle such issues at a root and branch level to ensure the situation is not worse five, ten or 20 years from now for the most vulnerable children with whom we are dealing at present?

My second question might be a loaded one. I will ask it anyway. The witnesses do not have to answer it. It relates to the posturing that was done last year by the two parties in government. One party demanded higher taxation and the other party demanded an across-the-board cut of 3% in social welfare payments. What kind of damage would an across-the-board cut of 3% in social welfare payments do to the people with whom these organisations are dealing every day?