Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)

The Minister stated that there will be a review of the universal social charge, that the charge must be examined and so forth, which is fair enough in as far as it goes. However, given the cruel injustice that the charge represents for low and middle income workers and families, the review must be undertaken urgently. The universal social charge is damaging people who are barely making ends meet. In some cases, people are in danger of going under in terms of meeting bills, paying mortgages and so forth.

The review must address the injustice of imposing the universal social charge on those who cannot afford to pay it. Instead of imposing it on people who cannot afford it, will the Minister examine or consider examining the case for taxing those with enormous wealth who have been untouched? Was he not as shocked as I and most of the country were to learn in the Sunday newspapers published the weekend before last that the 300 richest people in this country have €57 billion in personal wealth and that their wealth increased by €6.7 billion in the past year?

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