Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We will come back to Deputy Moynihan, who is having connection issues. Go raibh míle maith agaibh as bhur gcur i láthair. Bhí sé an-suimiúil éisteacht leis an méid a bhí le rá agaibh. Is dócha go mbaineann an chéad cheist atá agam le Social Justice Ireland. The first question I have is for Social Justice Ireland. We have heard a lot of talk about the infrastructural deficit, especially in housing. We have heard it from the IMF and now we have the ESRI clearly saying we need to double investment in capital spending in the context of housing. It points out that billions of euro will be needed to fund the construction of housing and that this can be done without creating undue economic risks. This is something I have been pointing out for a long time. It is good to hear certain commentators and even some politicians agree it is time to focus on it.

We are also hearing that there is a need to focus on the deficit. That seems to indicate that some people have not learned the lessons of the previous crisis. Social Justice Ireland indicated that one of the priorities for budget 2022 should be to focus on creating employment and delivering infrastructure rather than simply focusing on reducing the deficit. What risks does Dr. Healy see to the economy and society from pursuing a deficit reduction first approach? Does he consider that to be a call for austerity via the back door?