Dáil debates

Wednesday, 14 October 2020

Financial Resolutions 2020 - Financial Resolution No. 7: General (Resumed)

 

7:00 pm

Photo of Willie O'DeaWillie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I was going to share time with Deputy McGuinness, but I presume I am now sharing with Deputy Alan Farrell instead. I welcome that this is an expansive budget, which is the proper way to go. It is not possible to cut our way out of a crisis like this. We must spend our way out of it. I welcome the supports for business, particularly the extension of the tax warehousing scheme and the commercial rates remission.

I have several questions, however, regarding the new Covid restrictions support scheme, CRSS. The amount payable depends on turnover during a corresponding period in 2019. I know several people, however, who set up businesses in 2020, before the onset of Covid-19, so how will their payments be calculated? I would also like to know if I am correct that this is not a direct grant aid scheme, but more of a liquidity situation. I refer to there being an advance on tax credits, so the more that is received, the higher the tax that will be paid some time in the future.

Speaking of liquidity, I regret that the banks have failed to play their part in releasing liquidity for small businesses. I recall being part of a Government that was forced to pay €60 billion, net, of taxpayers' money to bail out the banks. In return, the banks are now very remiss when it comes to bailing out the people.

Most of the representations I have got from small businesses and businesses particularly affected by the pandemic have related to the temporary wage subsidy scheme, TWSS. Most of those businesses requested that the TWSS be restored in its original form and said that doing so would be the difference between survival and extinction. That has not been done and I regret that. The scheme has been replaced by the employment wage subsidy scheme, EWSS, which is only half as good and twice as difficult to access. The Minister said in his speech yesterday that when the EWSS runs out in April, he is going to replace it with another scheme. He did not say he was going to continue it as it is. He said he was going to replace it with another scheme. I ask the Minister to give me an assurance that the new scheme will not be less generous than the present EWSS, which is in itself far less generous than the TWSS.

I welcome the increases in social welfare. As regards increasing the fuel allowance and the other measures intended to offset the increase in carbon tax, there is a substantial cohort of people in receipt of social welfare who will not benefit from any of those measures. Time does not permit me to go into the matter in detail but it is a substantial cohort. Are they supposed to suck up the increase in carbon tax?

I also welcome that the Government is honouring its commitment to maintain the old age pension at 66. That is a very costly measure. Nevertheless, I ask the Minister to give me an assurance that the early retirement allowance promised on page 75 of the programme for Government will be introduced in the social welfare Bill because there was no mention of it in the budget.

I regret that there are no general increases in social welfare rates for the second year in a row. Experience has shown that when social welfare rates fall behind increases elsewhere in the economy, the gap widens and inequality and poverty increase. That is the reality. There are 690,000 people living below the poverty line in this country and we have the second highest rate of child poverty in the OECD. I hope that when we stand up to debate next year's budget, those figures will not have increased.

The Minister for Finance referred yesterday to the fact that the large spending was offset to some extent by savings. It is true that there has been a huge build-up in savings since the onset of Covid. What is lacking in the budget is a scheme to help unlock those savings for the benefit of the Irish economy. Is it proposed to introduce such a scheme?

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