Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Workers and Unemployed Action Group)

We have heard already from various speakers that the programme for Government is about change, reform and all being in this together. However, one of the most important and significant questions to be asked about the programme for Government is who pays for the recession. As always, we find that low and middle income earners and poor people are being forced to pay for this recession, a recession they had no hand, act or part in creating.

As always, taxes are for little people. There is no distribution of the burden of tax throughout the various levels in society. Low and middle income families are being targeted in the programme for Government through the continuation of the universal social charge, which is a most regressive tax and a huge burden on ordinary families. They are being targeted through water charges and a re-introduction of rates on domestic dwellings. When the Government is finished,every family in the country will have paid approximately €1,000 per year in additional indirect taxes. This will fleece them and put them under huge pressure.

Let us compare this to what very wealthy people in the country will pay as a result of the programme for Government. This is a very wealthy country. The problem is that the distribution of wealth is probably the worst in the developed world. We had a peep in the window to this situation in the most recent edition of the Sunday Independent; 300 people in the country have wealth of €57 billion and we know from studies that 3,000 millionaires in the country own €120 billion in assets. We also know that the top 6% super rich in the country have assets of €250 billion. They are not being asked to pay one farthing more in the programme for Government. There is no wealth tax. Some years ago, a Fine Gael Minister introduced a wealth tax which was abolished by Fianna Fáil. Now, we have low and middle income families being fleeced while people who are extremely wealthy and who have huge assets are not being asked to pay a red cent to get us out of the recession. Many of these very people were involved in creating this recession. It is about time that we had a little patriotism from the super wealthy in the country.

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