Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Potentially hundreds of thousands of businesses will apply for this. I cannot justify or explain every potential applicant. When we see who draws it down, we can discuss it further. If we can make changes to improve it, we will.

What are we doing in the budget that was announced? Two things. This is to allocate this funding to support hundreds of businesses who badly need it as soon as possible. Within that, some businesses do not need it or could survive without it. That can happen. In other situations, which are not for our Department, families are under serious pressure. The €11 billion package in the budget of a few months ago is mainly to support individuals and families under extreme pressure due to the cost of living. Most people recognise that will assist them through a difficult time. That is the response to them.