Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As a man who comes from the nice county of Wexford and knows a bit about agriculture, I am sure the Minister of State, Deputy D'Arcy, knows what a biennial plant is. It takes two years to complete its life cycle and then in most cases, dies, so a new one must be planted. This budget reminds me of a biennial plant. I studied it yesterday and saw several announcements, for example, prescription costs to be reduced by 50%, the monthly threshold for the drug payment scheme to be reduced by €10 a month, free GP care for those younger than eight years, free dental care for those younger than six years, and 1 million additional home care hours. When will these come into operation? I have made the point to the Minister of State that many of these will not come into operation until next September. I cannot understand how any Government is allowed to make announcements about particular improvements that will not come into operation for at least one year. I do not blame the Minister of State because he did not put the budget together, but it is deception, and I use the word with care. It is deceiving people. While here and there we hear it mentioned that some of those items will not be changed until next September, in general the public thinks these improvements are happening straight away.

Carbon tax, stamp duty and other changes came into being on the night of the budget. Why is it not the same across the board? If the Government is going to increase taxes, it does that straight away, but why does it not give benefits to people straight away? That is a crucial point.

I think I was the only Deputy in my constituency who voted for a carbon tax.

I assure the Minister of State that was not an easy thing to do in the constituency of Roscommon-Galway. However my party - and I thank our negotiators and Front Bench in this regard - is looking to the future. Fianna Fáil is looking to the Bord na Móna workers who have been left out on a limb. It is probably 70 years since Bord na Móna became a fantastic employer for people in our region. Soon it will be gone.

See this speech in context