Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Mr. Barnes is saying there is not a lot of space. We are in a far better position than we were last year. There is not a lot of space because the Government has set out in its summer economic statement that this is what it is going to do. Mr. Barnes is concurring with that. There is space if one wants it. I am dealing with families in Donegal who are homeless, kids who are in hostels and people who cannot get an appointment to see a consultant for more than a year. Then there is the number of people who are fearful of opening the envelope to see their bills. There is space if we want to have it. Mr. Barnes is concurring with this allocation of €1.6 billion to deal with the crisis that we have but it is not good enough, it is not big enough and it is not going to cut it. The package is far too small. We can wrap it up in billions of euro and all the rest. An allocation of €1.6 billion will not fit when one takes into account the social welfare payments that have to be significantly increased, a tax package that needs to be directed at low and middle incomes, investment in health and additional capital for housing.