Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have been in the Dáil for a quarter of a century. Apart from the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, I am the longest-serving Deputy to speak this evening. I have not engaged, and never will engage, in feigned outrage for the purpose of garnering publicity or column inches but when I feel strongly about an issue or disagree with a direction at policy level, I will make valid observations and comments informed by Labour Party values, philosophy and ethos. That is important.

It would be churlish of me not to welcome the fact that the budget has made improvements in a number of areas, which I hope will be reflected, however diminutively, in our people's living standards and quality of life over the next 12 months. Some of these improvements are minimal. However, I like the parable of the acorn seed - always value and welcome the first step and hope it leads to something great.

To be honest, I get a sniff of an election from this budget. Balancing the books is a laudable objective but it loses that laudability when it is done for a disguised purpose. The disguise in this instance revolves around the fact that, if we get to next October, the fiscal space will have been elongated and will not need any top-up from an obesity tax, which I suppose I will suffer myself, and rightly so, or other little taxes here and there in an attempt to generate the extra €800 million or so that would be needed to raise the fiscal space to what it was last year, that being, €1.2 billion. Next year, people can get ready for double that. My prediction is that, if we reach that point, there will be an election very shortly afterwards. I do not like this degree of cynicism because I do not subscribe to it. Whatever happens happens, and I welcome anything that helps our people.

From my background, I know that people have experienced significant difficulties, including some among my wider family, with their mortgages and in trying to make ends meet. If a budget makes the way more malleable for them at all, it is a first step. That is all it is, however, and I do not want to say anything further.

I am somewhat concerned that we may not have learned the lessons of the past. I had many debates with the then Minister, Mr. Charlie McCreevy. A reversion to a reliance, no matter how minimal initially, on transactional taxes must constitute a worrying development. This smacks of a reversion to the former Minister's economic philosophy, that being, if one has it, spend it. He introduced the savings scheme, or the one-and-four as I used to call it. It was useful. Unfortunately, though, it matured at a time when it accelerated the explosion rather than putting a damper on it. This philosophy is not dependable, as we now know. The estimate of nearly €400 million from commercial stamp duty indicates that there will soon be an over-reliance on revenues from this source, given that it accounts for almost half of the budgeted revenue in terms of the expansion of the fiscal space by €830 million to a total package of approximately €1.2 billion, which is somewhat similar to last year.

Another aspect was aired last night but, unfortunately, I had to attend a funeral and could not be in the Chamber. It related to farms. Deputy Fitzmaurice tabled an amendment in that regard and I understand that it was supported by approximately 30 Deputies. Had I been present, I would have been supportive of it as well, although that would not have changed the numbers much. This issue will have a significant impact on people who are trying to consolidate a farm. They might be over 40 years of age and not have all of the green certificates and Teagasc certificates. Three years ago, one could not get one of those certificates for love nor money. Thankfully, they can now be acquired online. That modernisation is good. I am not a party to it, but it is good.

Someone has told me that, when a small portion of land comes up for sale down the road, instead of paying €4,000 on €200,000, he or she will pay €12,000. That is a concern and I would be less than honest if I did not reflect it on behalf of a number of farmers although not too many - to be honest, three farmers have contacted me. It is not a bone shaker but something like this becomes crucial when someone has to find the extra bit of money. This is particularly so in light of the need to accelerate intergenerational transfers. Indeed, people might pass on some property to non-relatives. The Government could have stretched a bit and exempted such situations.

For 19 quarters in a row, there has been a steady decrease in unemployment levels and the rate is now 6.1%, which is welcome. The decrease stretches back to a time when we were in government for five years. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle lives in the north west, so he has probably been advocating on the issue I am about to raise. We must ensure that the decline in unemployment is spread equally. In the Border, midland and western region, part of which covers the Leas-Cheann Comhairle's area, it is hard to see all of this on the ground. One can see jobs, but they are low paid and the degree of continuity in them is questionable. The Minister of State, Deputy Breen, is present. He is from a part of Clare that needs a boost as well. I am sure he will work to ensure that the fruits of the decline in unemployment get down to such regions.

There must be clear policies. In County Westmeath, 39% of small retail shops are seeing increases in their rates. I will cite the example of our shop. The rates have increased from €400 to €2,300. The shop provides two and a half jobs. Someone might say that that is not much. It is not great but in a little area like Ballynacargy where there are fewer than 300 people, it is a help.

The new valuation system is wiping out small retail shops. People can pay all of the lip service and do all of the dances on the pin that they like, but let us be honest - rural shops are on their way out.

Let there be no hypocritical stances or calling for marches, because I will not participate in any of them. They are on their way out. People are not supporting them. People need to support their post offices, shops and petrol stations. I am very proud of the fact that if I was driving tonight, I would rather run out of petrol in Kinnegad than go anywhere else to get petrol than in my own home little place of Shanley's I have done that since I came here. That is what needs support and I appeal to people to support them.

They are not helped by Government policy. One could go around picking up great ideas but they are not worth a sugar if one arm of the State, the valuation group, comes along and imposes 400% increases. They are on their knees. I have said before that in a few years there will not be a shop between Mullingar and Longford. If one is passing through Carrick-on-Shannon, one will not get a shop. There will probably be one in Rathowen; that would be the best place. It is a desperate situation.

The big argument back when we were in government was about trying to protect what we had in terms of social protection and other expenditure areas. There was no room for manoeuvre when cast under the supervisory arms of outside masters. I remember the awful times for our citizens and I know the political price we have paid for playing a constructive governmental role in trying to get the country back on track. I recall my short ten months as a Minister of State and the fight I had to protect essential expenditure on housing such as the disabled persons grant, DPG. It was €38 million and I spent weeks trying to protect it. I know people here do not give a damn; all they do is come in and slash it. I got sick soon after that. I am not associating the two. All I will say is that it was pretty tough.

Capital was allocated under the action plan for housing some weeks ago. One of my greatest disappointments when I go out of here is that when I had a chance to be Minister of State, there was no money. There was only money for the regeneration of Ballymun and Limerick. We handed over the provision of social housing to the private sector. It was the biggest mistake ever. I came out of social authority housing, as did everyone belonging to me. We are very proud of that fact. People can condemn the Labour Party but our record in the provision of local authority housing stands the test. Former Minister, Liam Kavanagh, built more than 20,000 houses. Members should also consider the record of former Deputies Liz McManus, Emmet Stagg and Jim Tully. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle is probably the only person here who knew and remembers Jim Tully. He would cross anything to make sure local authority houses were built. He gave the money down to local authorities because local authority people were able to negotiate, get land banks and build.

One of the big concerns I have about local authority housing is that it should be integrated. We cannot have everybody on social welfare going into a local authority estate. We need an integrated mix of people of various earning capacities. That is very important. That is why there has to be a mix and why the local authorities should provide affordable and social housing and other housing, for example, for homeless people. Some 5,000 units were to be built. We had a fully costed budget. The Labour Party proposed that an extra 5,000 public housing units be built on publicly owned lands. We have over 700 sites available so there is no excuse. We should be well able to build them. If there are any local authorities saying they do not have the expertise, it is nonsense. When he was Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly gave enough money for 325 architects and engineers to be employed. That is true. I was on to him about it. There is a role for the private sector in building houses, affordable or otherwise, but there is only one way to provide social housing and that is through the local authority system.

It was a massive error to give over the provision of local authority housing to the private sector. It was a decision Fianna Fáil made in the late 2000s. Another important area that was given over to the private sector is the HAP system. Houses built under the supervision of local authorities were never or rarely the subject of structural problems. They were supervised by engineers, a clerk of works, gangers and other assessors and they were built to the highest standard. It was a win-win situation. We never had pyrite or anything like that when the local authorities were building houses. Everything was done right. I am a passionate advocate of local authorities.

Incentivising and supporting private developers in the market has failed spectacularly. It is a philosophy with which we in the Labour Party fundamentally disagree. It is a cause for concern. We must also focus on the provision of affordable houses. Deputy Martin Kenny referred to that area. We have no affordable housing scheme. There was no reference to a vacant house tax in the budget which Fr. Peter McVerry and Pat Doyle have been strong advocates of and identified as an important issue going forward.

We have a number of small measures such as the change in the vacant site levy which is a step in the right direction. A worrying trend is the level of rent increases which seem to be on an exponential growth trend. They will continue in that way in the absence of adequate supply and the only way to control rents is to cap them. That is what we in the Labour Party advocated. We did not go the full whack. People can say what they like about the former Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, but he was a strong advocate of capping rents. It is the only way. We can have pressure zones and things like that but there are several ways of getting around it. We should cap them and see how we go. It is time we took the constitutional provisions in one direction. There is a hierarchy of constitutional provisions and we should test them in the interest of the community good.

Health care is an important area and €685 million has been nominally allocated in additional health expenditure. If we drill down through the figures, many of the increases will be for staff costs. No doubt there will be a deficit to be addressed at the end of the year. We will have approximately €270 million available for new measures and new services.

Some €55 million has been allocated to the National Treatment Purchase Fund. This is an increase of €30 million on the 2017 figure, which I welcome, and it is to tackle out of control waiting lists. Many people are waiting to have cataracts removed and young children are awaiting urgent, special orthodontic treatment. Elderly people awaiting elective orthopaedic procedures, such as hip operations, are left languishing on waiting lists not for one year, but for several years. Their condition deteriorates and they are in excruciating pain. For those waiting on hip operations, the hip that is not affected becomes more problematic and painful than the one originally affected. I know that because I had them done. We cannot condone the ongoing situation that pertains to scoliosis patients. These scandals have to stop.

It is difficult to explain to our long-suffering citizens and brothers and sisters that we cannot provide the vital and additional resources to deal with these huge backlogs because we have to balance our books or achieve the medium-term budgetary objectives. If someone told me that, I would be very angry. One of the most demoralising situations as a public representative is to have to convey a reply from the HSE, a hospital or Minister to long-suffering patients that they can whistle for their treatment and must continue to suffer in peace and quiet. Often, the reply states at the bottom that if the person's condition deteriorates, their GP can relate that to the relevant consultant. It is a load of codswallop and only heaps despondency upon despair.

I welcome the reduction in the threshold for the drugs payment scheme of €10 and I hope it will be reduced to €100 in the next budget. A number of constituents have complained very bitterly to me lately about the costs of the scheme.

I welcome the reduction in the pupil-teacher ratio in the primary sector and the additional allocation of resources to cater for special educational needs. These young people must be given an opportunity to reach their full potential. We must continue to invest additional resources in the area.

The taxation measures will be introduced from January, yet the social welfare payment increases are deferred until the end of March, which is a 12-week delay. The tax measures for the low paid will hardly improve their living standards. Workers earning about €25,000 a year will benefit by just €1 a week, which will not get them a bar of Fry's chocolate cream. Those on €70,000 will gain €6 a week. It is interesting to note that higher earners will gain more. The social welfare increases will not come into play until the end of March 2018, which is a deferral of 12 weeks. That means the actual weekly value of the increase in 2018 will be €3.85. That is significant. The Christmas bonus was done away with by Fianna Fáil. We reintroduced it and worked hard for it. It was one of the areas in which we worked very hard. We got it back up. In terms of trying to get it back up to 100%, the Government should try to bring it to 90%. I understand the Government cannot do everything in one swoop but I appeal for the Christmas bonus to be brought back in full because it is very important.

Children and child care is an important area. There is no increase in the universal subsidy for child care. There is no move to introduce professional salaries for child care workers, not even the living wage. There is nothing in child benefit.

An extra €20 million has been allocated to extend the ECCE programme from 61 weeks to 76 weeks, which is a full two-year service. There is a 7% increase in ECCE capitation on full-year costs universally. There is no requirement on child care providers for this to go to support staff, increase salaries or support upskilling. There are no measures to cap the costs for parents despite €2.7 million being allocated to the ABC programme to fully fund that. The Minister, Deputy Zappone, needs to work harder on certain child care areas. I strongly support her in this regard. I am not here to criticise. She made a good start last year, but there is a disappointing falling back this year.

I am glad the Government has adopted Labour's Brexit trade adjustment fund proposal with a Brexit loan scheme of €300 million. Deputy Martin Kenny spoke about the Border areas where there is crossover. Many of those people have appeared before the relevant Oireachtas committee.

I think Deputy Martin Kenny may have also mentioned that the designated areas have been treated badly for the past seven years and it is time to fix this. None of the rural development schemes ever provided adequate compensation for the income lost associated with the designation of lands - the NPWS scheme that was introduced and disappeared into thin air. Farmers with hen harrier designation have seen their lands totally devalued because of the blanket ban on afforestation, drainage requirements, control of rushes and all those other things. Many of them have been locked out of the NPWS scheme for years and also have been at risk of land-eligibility penalties. They have been left high and dry in that regard. A special NPWS scheme will need to be introduced for these designated lands.

I welcome the budget as a first step. I know where it is leading to and there will be a rare old battle trying to claim the kudos and the credits this time next year. I am long enough in the tooth to know that is politics. Our job in opposition is not to be carping all the time. If we see something positive, we welcome it. I know Fianna Fáil had an input into the budget and I am sure there are areas I welcome. Deputy Thomas Byrne almost claimed the budget as his, but that is going too far. A more restrained person, such as the Leas-Cheann Comhairle, would be far more effective; he would know when to stop. He would always know when he is in front.

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