Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In facilitating this budget under the confidence and supply agreement, it was crystal clear to us that some measures did not give adequate cognisance to the impact on people. We will support Financial Resolutions Nos. 3 and 5, which we view as technical adjustments to, respectively, maintain the €150 million yield on the bank levy and fill a loophole so that companies being sold or purchased will be subject to stamp duty of 1%, which is an important revenue-raising measure, albeit the Government is not in a position to give an estimate of how much.

Regarding stamp duty on commercial property under Financial Resolution No. 4, while I take the Minister for Justice and Equality's point that the commercial property sector is strengthening and may be well placed to sustain such an increase, we have major concerns in this regard about the ability of the agricultural community, in particular small farmers who would not qualify for the reliefs available to family members. Will the Minister clarify the situation and how the Government will mitigate yet another impact on the farming community, which is in a time of crisis, as mentioned in many dispatches in the Chamber today? While facilitating, reluctantly, the budget under the confidence and supply agreement, we will not be voting for this measure.

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