Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The budget has introduced an adjustment of €2.5 billion in taxes and savings, while at the same time using money from the State's cash reserves from the sale of the national lottery and other sources to bring the actual adjustment announced by the Minister to €3.1 billion. This is sleight of hand. The people are not naive when it comes to the games played by politicians. They can see when they are being sold a pup because the Labour Party needs a fig leaf to cover its blushes. Caithfidh muid ceist a chur: céard a sheasann Páirtí an Lucht Oibre fá choinne i 2013? Céard a sheasann sé fá choinne níos mó? The Labour Party should have argued for a lower adjustment but also a budget that would have given something back to ordinary families. That is what Sinn Féin proposed in its alternative fair budget. We set out a series of measures such as the abolition of the property tax. The Government wants to implement the property tax in full on 1.8 million households. We proposed abolition of the property tax and a rebate to taxpayers of approximately €278 per annum. Why not do as Sinn Féin proposed and take 296,000 of the lowest paid out of the universal social charge tax net?

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