Séamus Healy (Tipperary, Workers and Unemployed Action Group) | Oireachtas source

I am happy to have the opportunity to say a few words about the summer economic statement. Unfortunately, this is an as-you-were document: no change and a continuation of existing policy. What this means is recovery for the rich and powerful in our society and living from hand to mouth for all those families on low and middling incomes. It means not having two cents to rub together at the end of the week.

Indeed, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in its budget statement tells us exactly what it means. It calls Ireland an unequal nation with growing gaps in income. It tells us that the top 1% increased their income share by 20% in the last 12 months, and the lowest 50% lost 15% of income share at the same time. That is the situation.

There is a failure in this document to tax the wealthy. There is no taxation, for instance, on the huge financial assets of the wealthy in our society. The wealthiest 10% have financial assets now of in excess of €37 billion over peak boom levels. There is no tax on that. The 300 wealthiest people in this country have €100 billion in wealth. Twelve of those have €50 billion, and €6 billion of that arose in the last 12 months. This is an absolute scandal. The rich and powerful are simply not paying their fair share and they must be forced to do that. It is the Government's job to do that.

Capital expenditure is totally inadequate, and is particularly deficient in the area of housing. Patricia King, general secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, only last week made a very important statement on this issue when she said that Europe must be told to wait for payment of debt, that the €3.5 billion in shares from Allied Irish Banks must be used to build social houses, and that local authorities must lead an emergency housing build into the future if we are to tackle the housing emergency.

The document has the usual nod in the direction of balanced regional development. It refers to "ensuring balanced regional growth". Several weeks ago the Central Statistics Office issued its unemployment figures. It showed that in Tipperary all of our large towns and villages have unemployment levels of in excess of 5% over and above the national average. That is a total of 26 electoral divisions in the country. Unfortunately, the towns of Carrick-on-Suir and Tipperary are unemployment blackspots, having more than 27% of their population unemployed. There is a number of things that need to be done to help this situation, to increase employment levels and to ensure that we get our fair share of employment and investment into the county. The first is the upgrade of the N24. This is a vital social and economic corridor right across the county. Kilkenny, Waterford and Tipperary city and county councils have requested the upgrade of the N24 to motorway standard and there is a proposal to that effect with the Minister currently. If that was done there would be a saving of approximately €400 million and huge economic benefits for Kilkenny, Waterford and indeed all of south Tipperary, including bypasses of Tipperary town, Clonmel and Carrick-on-Suir. It is a vital economic corridor.

Another vitally important issue is the regional jobs development plan announced by the Minister a number of years ago. There are ten towns which are identified in that plan in which the IDA will provide additional industrial and office space. None of those towns listed is in Tipperary. That needs to be rectified urgently.

I hope this document can be amended to ensure that low and middle income families, and indeed rural Ireland, is treated fairly into the future.

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