Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I concur with some of the comments Deputies have made on the resolutions. What does the Minister expect the measures in Financial Resolution No. 10 to yield? He indicated that Financial Resolution No. 11 would yield €47 million. Will he also elaborate on the reference to credit unions?

I concur with colleagues that since the introduction by the former Minister for Finance, Mr. Charlie McCreevy, of disastrous changes to the taxation system, we have been crawling back towards a sustainable taxation system.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Gilmore, commented on the proposals made by the Opposition in respect of the budget. As the Minister, Deputy Quinn, will be aware, seven weeks ago a section of the Labour Party led my me, Deputy Nulty and Ms Nessa Childers, MEP, made a number of proposals relating to people with massive wealth and on higher incomes. If implemented, the proposals would have realised approximately €1 billion. They were costed by the Department of Finance through parliamentary questions and offered an alternative to the measures in today's budget.

I commend my Labour Party colleagues on the introduction of a measure to cap the value of pension contributions eligible for tax relief at €60,000. This was a significant victory for the Labour Party and a measure Deputy Shortall and I called for several months ago.

While there are positive aspects to the budget, in overall terms this is a sad day for the Labour Party. The Fine Gael Party set its priorities and ran rings around my party on many aspects of the budget. My colleague, Deputy Boyd Barrett, is correct that-----

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