Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)

They work near a train station but cannot use it.

What is the Government doing about bus services? Will extra buses be put on the road? Last year, issues were raised about motor tax and VRT on buses used for youth groups. Has anything been done to encourage people to use buses to get from A to B? I cannot see anything in the budget to do so. The Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, was quoted in The Irish Times welcoming the reduction in gas prices and stating how great it would be for businesses and that we would have cheaper gas. If that is his view, why is he slapping on a tax? It is a contradiction.

It was stated that the carbon tax will allow us to maintain or reduce payroll taxes. This means slapping on a carbon tax at one end and down the line reducing income taxes as was done previously. I heard the Minister state he wants to reduce labour tax which is Progressive Democrats speak for income taxes. The fairest way to tax people and to provide public transport is through income taxes. If the Green Party wants to be the new version of the Progressive Democrats, that is fine. However, it should not pretend to be something it is not. If the Green Party wants to do something about climate change and encourage greater equality in this country, it should not say that all the statistics show that more equal societies, in terms of incomes, do better in respect of climate change.

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