Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Finance Bill sets out the tax measures that accompany the budget. Taking up the point raised by the previous speaker, the Bill has been neither future-proofed, gender-proofed nor rural-proofed. For most ordinary people, this is all just an abstract exercise. It certainly does not help to build us back better after the pandemic. The Finance Bill reflects a Government that is out of touch with hard-working people who are crippled by the cost of living. That is the main message I am getting back from people. Deputy Doherty spoke earlier about how the decision on the pyrite and mica redress scheme may be extended beyond 9 November, which I was shocked to hear. I hope it is not true and that the nightmare is going to end for the families impacted by this. It was absolutely shocking for them to find that measures were not included in the budget.

Sinn Féin proposed an allocation of €1.5 billion in revenue-generating, progressive tax measures as part of our alternative budget. Proposals such as the introduction of a 3% solidarity tax on individual incomes, which would bring in €176 million, were ignored by the Government. Last month, we saw an unambitious budget. Now we see a Finance Bill that is more notable for what is absent than what is included. A vacant property tax is not included and even the weak zoned land tax will not apply until 2024 at the earliest. There is no move to apply the full rate of capital gains tax on the disposal of property by investment funds. We see the bank levy being almost halved, even though citizens are still owed €10 billion. The Minister said he left out provisions regarding Ulster Bank and KBC Bank because he did not want to disrupt their withdrawal from the market. What about the disruption to all the communities and loyal customers who are left without a bank?

The Finance Bill and budget are two sides of the same coin. The real test will be their ability to have an impact on people's lives. I rang one healthcare worker after the budget to see how it would impact on her life. She will get an extra 30 cent per hour to bring her up to the minimum wage. That is what the budget means for her. She is getting an extra 30 cent an hour after working in the most harrowing conditions right through the pandemic. For good measure, she is getting a carbon tax slapped onto her fuel and heating oil. The Minister is saying he has to do this to ensure people change their behaviour. The mind boggles. Does he want this person to put on an extra jumper?

Along with housing, healthcare is the area in which most people want to see real action. This budget will fail healthcare workers and the more than 900,000 people on waiting lists. That is frighteningly evident in Mayo and the west more generally. We have seen the highest rates of people on trolleys, and 15,613 people are now waiting for appointments and treatment at Mayo University Hospital, 22 of whom have been waiting more than four years. That speaks volumes. The budget and this Finance Bill will not impact on those people.

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