Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister has still not explained why we are not fixing the pipes before putting in the meters. On the issue of youth unemployment, there is little doubt that austerity has had a bigger impact on youth unemployment than on people over the age of 25 and especially over the age of 30. The schemes the Government has come up with have not solved youth unemployment. The only release valve seems to be emigration. While I know the figure is down to 26%, it seems that is due to more emigration.

Without a shadow of a doubt, the domestic economy has traditionally given more work to young people starting out than any other sector. People can talk about growth in the export figures but as long as the domestic economy has problems and living standards continue to fall for most people, it is hard to see jobs being created in that area. One of the few measures the Government took to deal with the domestic economy's problems was reducing the VAT rate to 9%. I do not know whether it will be retained in this budget.

We have been round the houses on the issue of rates and upward-only rents. People will say rates are being reviewed. I have rates being reviewed in respect of five wine bars and the proposal is that they will go up by 47% and not down.

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