Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas le achan duine a labhair ar an rún seo anocht. I thank all the Deputies for their contributions so far. I have listened to the points that have been made from all sides. My understanding of the carbon tax the Minister announced on budget day is it would be legislated for in Finance Act 2021. That included increases out to 2030. That vote took place on the 2 December 2021. I looked at the record because I wondered why the Rural Independent Group Members were protesting so much that we did not vote against it. It is clear the Sinn Féin Deputies all voted against it. It was revealing that none of the Rural Independent Group Members turned up for that vote, which legislated for the increase in carbon taxes we are dealing with today.

I listened to comments from other Opposition Members, particularly Deputy Cian O'Callaghan. W are not suggesting that this issue deals with the cost-of-living crisis. We put forward proposals, unlike his party, to deal with those issues, including some that his party is now supporting, such as the reduction in VAT for a period. That is to be welcomed. We believe the motion is focused on the principle of "Do no harm". The Government is about to make matters worse for many households.

The Minister of State from the Green Party, Deputy Ossian Smyth, was talking about 50 into two and how that works. It brought back memories of the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, telling us we needed two cars for every 50 people in rural Ireland. The Minister of State did not address the fact that what the Government plans to do will increase hardship on ordinary families who have already seen their annual home heating oil bill increase by €700 on average. It is easy for Deputies and Ministers to say it is not a huge increase, but €19 extra to fill people's home heating oil could be the extra amount that breaks them. It could mean they cannot go to the doctor the day their child is sick, they cannot turn on the heat that night or some other decision has to be made. People are making serious decisions in the real world that nobody in this Chamber has to make.

Let us forget about hitting back at Sinn Féin and the Minister saying carbon tax is an issue of humanity; it is not. The climate crisis is an issue of humanity; how we fund it and deal with it is not. The idea that carbon tax is the be-all and end-all is nonsense. Carbon tax, if it is to be used properly, is about changing behaviour. The Government does not even plan for behaviour to change, because the carbon tax will continue to increase. If it did plan for such change, we would see a significant reduction in the tax over the coming years but that is not being proposed.

The Minister did not deal with the issue of this being a regressive, flat-rate tax. Deputies pay the same tax as ordinary people on whom the cost-of-living crisis is bearing down. Ministers rehearse how they did this and that but the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and other organisations are on the front line and saying this is not enough.

The motion proposes we do not make matters worse. It is simple. The Minister is shaking his head. He will increase the cost of home heating oil and gas in a couple of weeks.

Some families are saying they cannot take that any more. That increase makes it worse for them. Perhaps it does not for the Minister, because he can absorb it. For many other people, though, it makes matters worse.

As I pointed out in my opening contribution, the issue is that not every person is causing the same problems. The top 1% are responsible for half of the world's carbon footprint. In Ireland, the top 10% have a carbon footprint that is eight times greater than the bottom 10%. What are the Minister and the Government planning to do? He is planning to do what he always does: use flat-rate, regressive taxes. The poorest people in society will pay the same as the highest earners. That is why this motion needs to be supported. This is why the Minister is out of touch. He can shake his head all he wants, but he is completely out of touch with what is happening in real life. If he is not, then why does he not act?

The motion is asking him to not make things worse. He is going to make things worse by doing this. I would like him to explain how, by increasing the price of gas and oil, he is not going to make things worse for hundreds of thousands of families already at breaking point. He is going to do that. The reason he can shake his head is that he does not get this and does not understand where people are at.

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