Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Oddly enough, the point made by Deputy Doherty that the State makes a lot of money from the measure is the only good thing about it. My problem with the measure is that it is regressive. I make the same argument about it that I made about tobacco in that it is another disproportionate hit for the less well-off - those on lower incomes who are being hammered from every quarter. This is symptomatic of the problem with the Government’s approach to taxation generally - not just this Government but successive Governments. Rather than opt for truly progressive redistributive taxation, they keep hitting the same group of people and effectively reducing their disposable income by loading taxes on goods they buy. That is why I am against the measure. In so far as there is a public health issue with alcohol abuse, this does not make a damn bit of difference, so I urge the Minister of State to please not waste our time with that spin. This is about money. That is fair enough, as the Government needs money, but there are more progressive alternative ways to raise money, as we have outlined on many occasions. I will not labour the point now but I pose the question of why we do not start taxing corporations, those on very high earnings and speculators, instead of giving them tax breaks. Let us go to that well instead of constantly going back to the same well of ordinary working people.

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