Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Government's proposal is for an unjust tax which is weighted against urban areas. It does not have and will not earn public support because of its unfairness and it could cause much wider problems. It is even more unfair to introduce such a tax before the rising social and economic impact of mortgage and household debt in the economy is tackled where one in five mortgages are actually in arrears. The lack of any major initiative in this area yesterday was striking.

As Fianna Fáil set out in its pre-budget document, the measures announced yesterday are not inevitable. They are the product of political choices between parties manoeuvring for position and they are bad choices. They will increase the already rising sense of unfairness about who is bearing the load of reducing our deficit. They will damage the confidence which is vital for a return to growth in our domestic economy. They will make our country less safe by withdrawing community policing from large sections of the country. They are being introduced without any overall strategy for growth or job creation other than hoping that something will turn up in Europe.

One of the most unmistakable traits of this budget is how it is lacking in new ideas or a major initiative. Many small things are being done in order that claims can be made to visionary leadership, but the difference between the rhetoric and the reality is growing every day. The only significant departure in this budget is that the Government has doubled-down on its policy of implementing profoundly regressive cuts. No matter how often the Taoiseach claims he is about fairness and job creation, the public will simply not buy it.

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