Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like Deputy Frank O'Rourke, I wish to mention some of my key focus areas in the budget. It is important to look at the budget in a global context. On a macroeconomic basis, it got it right and made the correct adjustment of €1.3 billion in the context of where Ireland was at. That was the prudent thing to do. Fianna Fáil, as part of its confidence and supply arrangement, approves of that type of macroeconomic policy.

In the context of Brexit and what we have seen in recent months, I welcome the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan’s announcement of a debt-to-GDP ratio target lower than what the European Union wants us to have in order that we create a rainy day fund. My view is that Ireland potentially is sleepwalking into a significant crisis, not because of our own decisions but owing to international factors. This is an open economy that is vulnerable and Brexit will have significant economic, political and social consequences for the State and the economy. I was disappointed with the lack of a focus on Brexit. It was unfortunate that the Government had left the budgetary allocation for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and its specific Brexit section as it was, as there must be a greater investment focus and resources to deal with the issue.

We could have been more innovative in the context of Brexit in attracting more inward investment. While I welcome the changes to the capital gains tax regime introduced by the Minister for Finance, capital gains tax inhibits investment in Ireland by indigenous companies and also by external investors, given that one third of an asset gain is taken by the State when an asset or business is liquidated. We could have looked at the mistakes made in the noughties in the capital gains tax regime when the focus was very much on property transactions. If we had differentiated between property and real asset price changes, it could have had a positive impact on indigenous businesses and Irish people investing in the economy but also from an international perspective. That issue should have been addressed, in addition to some of the other positive measures my colleagues mentioned that could have been introduced.

Overall, while I thought the budget strategy was different, I was disappointed by the bartering in the media as to which measure would or would not be introduced and who would or would not take credit for it. The people outside this bubble do not care who takes credit for this, that or the other. We must get away from the big bang budgetary approach. Some of the points made by Deputy John Paul Phelan were welcome. I hope the budgetary committee will have a strengthened role next year and that it will start its process earlier. For example, while it is welcome in the health care sector that there will be a €14.6 billion allocation, we have no policy or focus from the Department for Health on its future plans for the health service. Fine Gael entered the general election with a plan to introduce hospital trusts, but the party has yet to legislate or do anything in that regard. In addition, it is deferring to the health care committee without addressing the core needs and crisis in the health care system. There is rhetoric around health care and recruitment, but we are still haemorrhaging significant numbers of nurses, doctors and health care workers to international locations while failing to bring back those who have left home. A proper recruitment practice has yet to be introduced by the Government or the Department. It is easy to make budgetary statements and announcements on key policy areas, but we must move away from this and stratify our budgetary approach on a Department by Department basis that will link budgetary decisions or changes with policy outcomes. It is easy to announce in a shallow headline what the budgetary change is, but if we do not seen any improvement in health care in the coming year, in spite of the biggest health budget ever, it will be clear that there is a systemic issue that is not being addressed because we have no health care policy.

Deputy John Lahart has referred to some of the issues that arise with the first-time buyer's scheme, to which there has been a very negative response in my constituency. We have seen significant house price inflation in recent weeks since the budgetary announcement. It was a mistake. It would have been more prudent to award people who had been renting for a period and for the State to possibly help them with a deposit while recognising their rent payments. That approach would have less of an impact on the market. The Government has failed to address the regulatory costs introduced by the previous Minister with responsibility for housing, Deputy Alan Kelly, whereby a cost of more than €30,000 was imposed on each house before a sod had even been turned on a site. That was unfortunate.

In my area of responsibility I genuinely welcome the additional funding allocated to the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, for drug rehabilitation and treatment services. I hope that, as part of the next national drug strategy, she will move drug policy along in a positive and realistic way in order that we can address some of the core issues that face many in society.

Before I allow my colleague Deputy Brendan Smith to speak, I wish to welcome the measures introduced for the self-employed and the marginal gains for pensioners and others who have not received an increase for many years. I refer to the vulnerable people in communities who have endured significant difficulties on a weekly basis. I asked the Taoiseach a question today, but I have not yet received a response. It was about the reduction of 17% in the allocation to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. He mentioned that on a year by year basis grants had not been allocated owing to delays, but this should not have impacted on the projected grants for other sports clubs and new sports organisations which would like to access sports capital grants. Perhaps the measure might have been broadened within the existing budgetary framework. The Minister of State, Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, launched some positive measures to tackle obesity levels and other public health care issues which I fully support, but the cut to the sports grants allocation was really disappointing in the context of dealing with the obesity crisis.

I could continue speaking, but I will allow Deputy Brendan Smith to make his contribution.

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