Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I oppose this section. I cannot understand how the Minister could include this cut. There is no point in comparing small figures. A tax of 0.5% on the assets of the wealthy would yield €250 million. This is according to the Nevin Economic and Research Institute, NERI, and TASC, not me or anyone else. This is a fact.

I wish to quote the Minister from 2010 when the late Brian Lenihan introduced a budget. She stated:

I daresay the Minister must be aware that people with children took the biggest cuts this year and last year. Let us remember child benefit is paid almost universally to women. I suppose that is a comment on how few women are Members of this House and what little political power women exercise compared to bankers. The Minister always says "Yes" to bankers but in his different budgets he always finds it difficult to make payments in respect of children.

This was the Minister's comment in 2010.

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