Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Acting Chairman for the opportunity to address the Finance Bill. I welcome the Minister of State. I find myself wanting to start where I had planned on finishing, that is to say, talking about the long-term sustainability of budgets of this nature. This is so given the volume of borrowing that will be necessary to fund expenditure in 2021 in addition, no doubt, to voluminous amounts of borrowing next year to meet the demands of subsequent years. It would be unfortunate if Deputy Ó Cuív mentioned all of this already. I heard the beginning of his contribution and then I took a telephone call. By the time I got off the call, he had finished. I am unsure whether he went down the same road I wish to highlight, that is to say, I believe we have to be cautious about what it is and how it is we propose to fund this.

That being said, the budget is obviously a three-pronged approach. The first is Covid-19, the second is Brexit and the third is the day-to-day running of the country. I accept that all three are absolutely necessary. If it had not been for the actions of this House in the past decade we would not have been in a position to borrow as we have done and will continue to do in the coming years.

I wish to take the opportunity to comment on several sections of the budget and the Finance Bill and indeed in general terms in respect of a couple of Departments. One has to accept the vast increase in expenditure in all Departments, including, to name a few, the Departments of Health, Social Protection, Business, Enterprise and Innovation and Finance in the context of future provision for public expenditure and pensions and the steps that are being implemented in the context of the budget. We should consider what this will mean for taxpayers and citizens throughout the country in light of the decision of the coalition Government to adhere to the commitment given by the then Opposition to amend our existing legislation. I understand that today the commission on pensions was formally established. It is important that we recognise the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Department of Finance will have a major role to play in that process in terms of financing future pension provision. The findings of the commission might change future budgets as a result of the political commitments given. I accept this.

I wish to talk about the Department of Social Protection. I commend the former and current Cabinets on the steps they have taken with the pandemic unemployment supports across various Departments. I am referring not only to the pandemic unemployment payment but to those supports offered to enterprise as well. It is important to acknowledge that some of the schemes are not perfect. I can think of examples, including the State-backed loan guarantee that is being offered. Some firms complain that they are unable to access it because financial institutions are not taking the risk, even though there is an 80% risk on the part of the State. Of course, it is unfortunate that while the State may be backing some of these companies, there has to be acknowledgements of risk. Certain firms, unfortunately, have been unable to avail of such provisions and have had to rely on restart grants from the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation. This is in the context of the fact that they have had to shut down, primarily because they were not seen as viable financial entities beyond the shutdown. That is unfortunate but, having worked in the sector many years ago on the analysis side of creditworthiness, I recognise that the financial institutions should perhaps take a greater risk. Yet, there are concerns about the long-term economic impact of Covid-19 and the undoubted recession that will follow. The concern is this may have an impact on the longevity of certain companies, regardless of whether they receive State-backed loans.

I welcome the debate that has started again on the minimum wage. The reason I mention this is because the Covid pandemic unemployment payment has highlighted the disparity between what we need to do and what we have done thus far. I recognise that in the past decade the minimum wage has increased seven times. I recognise that in the past decade the minimum wage has increased by 25%. I also recognise that the cost of living in this country has always been higher than in our near neighbours. Therefore, we must recognise that our minimum wage should reflect that.

The pandemic unemployment payment also highlights another thing. It is the disparity between the payment of €350 and the unemployment payment of €203. The question is whether some form of tapered system can be introduced in future, perhaps after Covid. This could permit us to recognise that an individual who loses his job should in fact be supported more than someone who might be on welfare support for three months or six months after losing a job. Maybe some form of enhanced payment system should be introduced. As a legislative body, we need to have that discussion, perhaps at the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach or at the Joint Committee on Social Protection, Community and Rural Development and the Islands. This should be the start of the debate.

Deputy Harkin has raised a particular point in the House previously. Coincidentally, I was in the Chair the last time she raised the point. She referred to the potential tax burden of the pandemic unemployment payment. I echo her concerns. Individuals who find themselves on the pandemic unemployment payment are, by and large, those who are on lower income. This was the case prior to the recent move to level 5, but certainly before then, statistically, many such persons were on lower pay. Are we really looking as a Legislature at that sector with a view to insisting that they have a tax bill in a year or two? These individuals are most certainly not self-employed.

They have never done this before. Most of them are probably PAYE workers. Now we are asking them to file tax returns. I think that will present a difficulty. I have stated this before in another forum but it is something we should consider.

I mentioned that the budget's three main targets were Covid, Brexit and the day-to-day costs of running the country. I recognise the very significant increase in budgetary allocations towards various Government Departments, one being the Department of Health, which of course will be at the forefront of our response to Covid-19. However, the allocation to that Department must also address the chronic deficiency in primary healthcare and recognise our ability to meet the demands of our society in the context of our inability to hire relevant experts and consultants, for instance. I will not talk about the GP contract, but we must recognise that there has been and continues to be a difficulty in rural Ireland in promoting a sufficient number of GPs to cater for the community. The difficulty is not limited to rural Ireland. In parts of my constituency one has to wait three, four or five days to get a call back from one's GP for an appointment. These are medium-sized towns. It must be recognised that if this were a normal budget, the Department of Health would not be getting nearly as much and we would not be tackling those issues. Therefore, while healthcare is in focus, we have to recognise what the next step is in order to meet the demands of the Irish citizen.

Staying with healthcare, I acknowledge the changes to the prescription charges and the unjust and unfair levy applied to people with medical needs. Like Deputies McNamara, Durkan and Fleming, I was here pressing buttons when that levy was introduced, but it should have been abolished years ago. I recognise and acknowledge that it is moving in the right direction.

I also wish to refer to the likes of the fuel allowance to offset part of the cost of the increased carbon taxation that has been applied and the supports in that regard. I hope that in 2021, as we head towards the budget for that financial year, we recognise that we have not adjusted headline social welfare rates for our pensioners in particular. We should do that because we know that the fuel allowance does not cover the costs of carbon taxation and will not in the future. As a Legislature, we have to recognise that and ensure that the safety net is there and that we are not simply piling costs onto persons on fixed incomes. They cannot go off and get a job and earn a few bob to cover the extra costs.

I recognise with appreciation the additional supports being issued to the Department of Education, in particular in respect of the pupil-teacher ratio and children in special education. The allocation of these allowances in budgets through the Minister, Deputy Foley, and the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, is really welcome and a step in the right direction.

Finally, I recognise the unprecedented nature not only of our budget but also of our capital budget, which in one financial year is €10 billion - €10.1 billion, I think. This has to be recognised and has indeed been acknowledged. The scale of the work ahead of us across most Government Departments to ensure we meet the demands of Irish society in 2021 is enormous. It would be a real struggle to spend it all but it would also be a real struggle not to recognise that the level of infrastructural deficit that has been present in this country for many decades has to be bridged. We need, however, to do this in a sustainable way that recognises our ability as a State to fund such provisions and ensure we recognise that while we have a responsibility to try to modernise public services and the capital infrastructure surrounding those services, we also have to do so in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way. That means we need to make sure we hit our targets in our climate action plan. I refer in particular to public transport in that regard.

Considering where we were this month 12 months ago in the context of implementing budget 2020, little did we know we would find ourselves 11 or 12 months later in a world turned upside down, dominated by the attempt to control a global pandemic where hundreds of thousands have died and 3,000 members of our society have, unfortunately, succumbed to its effects. I therefore commend the Government. I also acknowledge some of the work of Members of the previous Dáil, in particular the previous Cabinet, on framing all this, and indeed I recognise members of the Opposition for forcing the Government to frame it in such a way. It is really important we recognise that there is a requirement of all of us sometimes to put down the party flag - or the non-party flag, as the case may be - and get behind a concept. In this instance the Department of Social Protection in particular has to be recognised as having responded amicably and appropriately to the pandemic. I commend the Ministers, Deputies Michael McGrath and Donohoe, and the Ministers of State in their two Departments for the enormous volume of work they must now go through to ensure we as a society are able to tackle this issue together and come out in the end, I hope, stronger for it. I thank the Acting Chairman for affording me the opportunity to speak.

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