Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Large savings and funds are relevant to people who are not self-employed as well as to those who are. The Minister could do with a reality check in regard to his assessment of how well the farming community is doing. If he wishes, I can bring him around the farming community in County Donegal or in any other county.

They have just come out of the most difficult winter and spring in recent history. Many families are suffering excessive hardship as a result of that. I remind the Minister of what his colleague, the Minister, Deputy Burton, has done over the course of her tenure in the Department of Social Protection. She has removed the 30% income disregard from families on farm assist. This means that every euro a farmer makes on the farm, working hard to do so, is taken straight off his farm assist payment, which is actually the same level as the dole. I think the Minister would be well served to check that out.

When we debated the means assessment for the self-employed and the farming community at committee level, the Minister indicated to me that he did not envisage that the working capital of a business or farm - land or buildings - would be assessed against the businessperson or farmer when a decision on a grant is being made. He also indicated that the normal throughput would not be assessed in such a manner. As he has done again today, the Minister indicated on that occasion that consideration was being given to assessing high levels of savings for these purposes. That is not specific to the farming community or the business community. It is an issue across the board. I ask the Minister to remove the cloud that has been left hanging over those who are self-employed and those in the farming community by making it clear, in line with what he has said today and at committee level, that the possibility of specifically targeting them is no longer on the table.

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