Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

One of my Solidarity colleagues may come to the Chamber to contribute to the debate and, if so, I will share my time with him or her. I thank the Minister for her presentation. To begin on a positive note, provisions in the Bill that should be welcomed are the extension of the hot meals scheme to an additional 35,000 schoolchildren, the increase in the working lone parents income disregard, although it is not enough, and the increase in the hours carers are allowed to work from 15 to 18.5. I also welcome that the blind welfare allowance will be disregarded in social welfare means assessments. Most people would be astonished to learn that was not the case hitherto.

Some of the commentary on budget 2020 is worth mentioning. It has been described by Social Justice Ireland, SJI, as betraying the vulnerable. The poorest 30% will be hit the hardest, particularly in light of increasing food costs due to Brexit. Although the poorest will experience little increase in their income as a result of the budget, it is estimated that Brexit will increase the cost of living by between €892 and €1,360 per household per year. That is no mean feat. According to Fr. Seán Healy of SJI, the choices made by the Government in budget 2020 mean that the standard of living of vulnerable people will fall and they will slip even further behind the rest of society. Michelle Murphy, research and policy analyst for SJI, stated that those on lower incomes will be the most exposed to the increase in the cost of living as a result of Brexit.

I refer to the privilege the Minister seems to have to withhold the increase in the minimum wage. She stated that the increase has been withheld to see what happens with Brexit. However, the Government did not hesitate to extend schemes such as the special assignee relief programme, SARP. The Minister for Finance extended the programme for 1,000 executives who can cut their tax bill by 30% as a result. These are high flyers who travel between various countries to attend business meetings. Eight of them earn between €3 million and €10 million per year. The tax break will cost the State €28 million. It is only fair for the public and Deputies to put the announcements made by the Minister on the Bill in the context of the overall budget announced by the Minister for Finance. Top civil servants will have their pay reviewed and the Minister's adviser probably stands to receive a large pay increase, but there is no chance of a similar increase for the lowest paid, 137,000 of whom exist on the minimum wage. It is worth noting that the vast majority of them are migrant workers, women or vulnerable people who work in the hospitality sector, the profits of which have exceeded pre-2008 levels. Profits in the tourism and hospitality industries have soared but the low paid in those sectors are being held hostage because of the threat of Brexit. We will seek a report from the Government on when and how the increase in the minimum wage will be paid.

I refer to the increases in jobseeker's allowance rates for young people. This is an effort for the Government to pretend it is in the business of reversing older and discriminatory austerity measures. The Minister stated that the outrageous attack on younger people in the form of the lower rate for those aged 25, which was brought in as an austerity measure, will go, while the even lower rate for those under 24 will go if the claimant lives independently. How is anyone expected to live independently on €112 per week? The answer is beyond me; perhaps the Minister can provide it. I recently tabled a parliamentary question asking her how many people will be affected by this change. As well as eulogising the Government announcement that the age-related payment for those aged 25 will be abolished, her reply stated that the increase in the personal rate from €157.80 to €203 will benefit 1,800 of those younger jobseekers. It also eulogised the announcement that the Government increased the rate available to jobseekers aged 18 to 24 who are living independently and in receipt of State housing supports, including rent supplement and HAP. The reply indicated that her Department has estimated that increase will affect approximately 300 young jobseekers. That is not worth making a headline announcement as though it is some great achievement. How many of the approximately 29,000 15 to 24 year olds who were unemployed in June of this year will benefit from the measure? When one calculates the figures, it becomes evident that some of the measures, particularly that which is supposed to help people under the age of 25 if they live independently, are grossly overstated to make the Department look good.

I am a member of the Joint Committee on Climate Action and worked hard to demand a report on the fuel allowance. We secured a priority resolution that the Government would report on it, but that did not happen. Figures compiled by the Money Advice and Budgeting Service, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and other organisations clearly show that 28% of the population lives in fuel poverty. The fuel allowance will be increased by €2 per week for 28 weeks, or €56 per year, to compensate for an increase in carbon tax which amounts to approximately €60 per year of an increase in the average gas bill. How does the Government square the circle on this issue? There are significant problems with it. Fuel and energy poverty are not just issues for the 370,000 who manage to qualify for fuel allowance. Every Member knows this is an issue for many hundreds of thousands of people - those on low income, the minimum wage or small private pensions - who get no help in dealing with increased carbon tax.

It will not even cover the total cost of that increase for the most vulnerable because most of them live in poorly insulated homes in rural areas. They have to use coal, oil or gas for their heating. They cannot change their behaviour and cannot go green tomorrow because they are not being given access to retrofitting or to SEAI grants because they do not qualify for fuel allowance or do not have wads of money that they can use to pay upfront and then have it returned by the State. This goes nowhere near addressing that for the many ill and old people in that situation. They are facing punishment for the sins of the fossil fuel corporations with no effort by the Government to tackle it. I will again seek a report on the levels of fuel poverty and how this increase will impact on those for whom the Minister claims it is intended.

Those are the only three issues on which I will seek reports.

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