Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This could be called the Mary Poppins budget. Mary dons the umbrella with the rainy day fund while the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, sings "A Spoonful of Sugar" makes the less popular measures go down.

Many of the measures in the budget are positive, such as an increase in the number of teachers, gardaí and additional guidance counsellors for secondary schools, further funding for social housing and trebling of the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, to tackle hospital waiting lists. Many of these measures are testament to Fianna Fáil's input.

I am, however, disappointed that the Government has overlooked the issues facing people with disabilities and their families. Fianna Fáil pushed for increased investment to assist those with disabilities but, when we look under the cover of the budget, unfortunately the Government has only allocated a measly €15 million in additional spending in this area out of a total available funding of €1 billion. Additional funding is going to be needed in this area. Both of the Ministers have been informed on many occasions in the House of the severe hardship endured by families in Louth and across the State about severe shortages or non-existent respite care places. Funding must be found for this. I am aware that this area can be engaged in further during post budget talks. Fianna Fáil will aim to ensure that this year’s HSE service plan will reflect our priorities in this area.

Consider occupational therapy in Louth where there is a severe staffing problem. Three therapists are on maternity leave and there have been no replacements. Severe staffing shortages in critical areas right across all sectors, be it education, health or the local authority, will inflict damage in trying to create what the economy needs across these sectors.

I welcome the extra funding for the NTPF and that it is being greatly increased to try to deal with the severe numbers of people on hospital waiting lists. I ask the Government and the Department of Health to examine further the cross Border health care initiative. I believe this is not promoted properly and that many people in doctors' surgeries are not even aware of it or that they can avail of it.

Many people will say they are happy with the price increase on cigarettes. I have no difficulty with that because it is a good health measure. I have been working with Retailers Against Smuggling and any further increases in the price of tobacco products will further exacerbate the increasing smuggling problem and cross Border trade. This will impact on retailers and small shops south of the Border and in the major city areas where there is widespread sale of illegal cigarettes. Ireland already has the most expensive alcohol and tobacco products in the EU and further increases in excise will only serve to drive trade across the Border where they are likely to buy other products besides cigarettes such as alcohol. This will detract from the trade of our business people right along the spine of the Border. In this context I encourage the Government to bring forward the Sale of Illicit Goods Bill 2017, which I introduced on First Stage in the Dáil. It is more important than ever that this Bill would go to Second Stage and be teased out, especially in the light of Brexit.

As I said yesterday when speaking on the financial measures in the budget, its shaky cornerstone is stamp duty on commercial property. While I recognise in particular that there are concessions for young farmers in the consanguinity rights on transactions, small to medium farmers buying lands to expand their farms should get a concession in any discussion post budget. All one has to do is look at the Irish Farmers' Journaltoday to see the angst and concern arising from this issue.

The housing measures which have been announced are repetitive.We heard about many of them before the budget, in which they are simply contained. In that context, I commend Fianna Fáil's Vacant Housing Refurbishment Bill 2017.I am concerned that we have in excess of 2,500 civil parishes in rural Ireland in which there are up to ten rural properties, respectively, which could be brought back into use. There are thousands of properties out there that could be brought into use through a little bit of concession in county development plans. It should be possible to explore the technological solutions in particular for properties on less than half an acre. My experience in a local authority context is that one cannot build unless one has a half-acre site, but most of these properties could be brought back into use with a little bit of ingenuity around technology.

The reduction in the pupil-teacher ratio to 26:1 is most welcome. However, we have to be straight up with parents and acknowledge that this includes resource teachers. There will still be classes of up to 30 pupils at any one time.

Increased funding for low-income farmers through the areas of natural constraint scheme and low-interest loan packages is welcome but the increase in the earned-income tax credit does not go far enough and continues to discriminate against self-employed workers as against PAYE workers.

I ask the Government to ring-fence a percentage of funds for tertiary or third class roads. In many counties, including my own, not one penny has been spent on local authority roads which are culs-de-sac. While we have introduced an LIS scheme which is most welcome, it is only for non-county roads. As such, we need to deal with it.

Fianna Fáil's input has made this a fairer budget. We would like to see greater spending, but there are many in the House who hurl on the ditch while failing to participate in government. They will promise the sun, moon and stars, but one will have to go up for those.

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