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

I welcome any acceleration of pay restoration for workers, either in the public or private sector. It is positive and is a fantastic vindication of the decision of gardaí and teachers to resist. They deserve the credit for this change in policy by the Government. Now people inside the Lansdowne Road agreement have been the beneficiaries of the justified militancy of gardaí and teachers. While I welcome it, I would much prefer if it were financed by increased taxes on those who could afford to pay, rather than from €120 million which the Minister cannot fully explain from where he is getting it. Is it not the case that it will inevitably come from cuts or, at least, by removing flexibility in other areas of public services which could do with it? Given how underfunded many areas are, such as health, they could do with a bit of upward flexibility and discretion but now they will not have it. Extra revenues should have been raised through larger contributions in corporate tax, financial transaction tax, taxes on those with higher incomes and a landlord tax, as we proposed in our alternative budget submissions, to ensure some pay restoration. While I welcome the pay restoration, is it not the case that the Minister is potentially robbing Peter to pay Paul?