Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is because it is the truth. The only measure that the party has would benefit the most valuable houses and those who own them.

On the question of where our economy stands, I welcome the support from many on the impact of the EWSS and the CRSS, as well as the PUP. These protected employers, those who work for them and income at a time the pandemic was at its very worst. Those measures laid the foundation for what is now being seen with the falling numbers receiving the PUP. Those measures have laid the foundations for a very strong rebound within our economy and it means the threat we faced of mass sustained unemployment has been avoided.

One Deputy said it should not be jobs at all costs. Try telling that to somebody who wants to come back to our country to live and work here and who may have been educated here. Try telling that to somebody who is still on the PUP who wants to get a job and stay in it in Ireland. The measures put in place under the EWSS and the CRSS that we are extending in a careful way will ensure we deliver on a commitment that there be no cliff edge. This will continue to play a role in helping our economy move into a place where it can grow and create jobs and money for public services across next year.

While I disagree with much of what Deputy Boyd Barrett said, I always acknowledge that he has a coherent world view that he puts forward in these debates. He is against much of modern capitalism. He is against foreign direct investment and the role it plays. There are 180,000 jobs created in our country through foreign direct investment. If the Deputy is against that kind of investment, where will he get those jobs from? This has been a long-standing topic of debate between the Deputy and me over many years. He is correct that companies have grown and become more profitable during the pandemic. That is one reason we need to change our overall policy for corporate tax in the world, but equally, they are companies that employ people in Ireland. If the Deputy is against them or the way they are structured, from where will he get the jobs those companies provide? That is not to mention the other firms and workers that depend on those companies being in Ireland. That was an essential element of what helped our country and economy recover from the pandemic.

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