Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the extension of the tax warehousing arrangements for businesses impacted by the new restrictions that were introduced in December 2021.

This is a practical move and it will benefit many of the businesses affected by the severe but very short-term changes. More broadly, we need to look at the serious issue of hidden debt for SMEs and microbusinesses to ensure it does not hinder their recovery in the medium term.

Increased energy and fuel costs, a shortage of materials and goods, inflation and a host of other difficulties have hit businesses like a ton of bricks at what is the worst time, I am sure the Minister will agree. If SMEs and microbusinesses are going to have a chance of returning to profitability and getting out from under the current crises they are going to need to have this warehouse debt taken into consideration. I have spoken to many SMEs, microbusinesses and family businesses and they are concerned that on top of their hidden debt, such as warehouse tax debts and commercial rent arrears, fuel and energy costs and inflation are creating an unsustainable business environment. Warehouse tax debt currently stands at approximately €3.2 billion. This debt will have to be repaid with interest of 3% from next January. It is important the Government looks at the feasibility of repayments, the rate of interest, the length of repayments and other factors in the face of rising costs. Circumstances have changed and they continue to change on an hourly if not a daily basis.

We all agree SMEs are the backbone of our economy, especially in terms of employment and local employment. The fact they have this warehoused debt should be a concern for all of us. It might be a case the Government needs to look at this specific issue, assess the structures that could be put in place for businesses to recover and for people to re-enter employment as we move, unfortunately, from Covid into a new and growing crisis. Many businesses have suggested solutions such as repayment of tax debt over an elongated period or reduced interest rates that would ease the burden of tax liabilities and ensure they can survive in the current climate. However, as is ever the case in these situations, a two-way dialogue between business and the State will inevitably uncover the most workable solution for all parties. I encourage the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Minister for Finance to engage with businesses in this regard. Unfortunately, the current situation is radically different from that which prevailed a month ago.

Does the Minister agree that the EU fiscal rules need to be amended or at least suspended until 2024 given the inflation crisis and the impacts of the war that we see are growing? The effects of inflation and the war in Ukraine mean this option must be seriously considered. We are experiencing a fragile recovery, which was already threatened by consistently higher prices than forecast. Now we have the turmoil caused by the Russian attack on Ukraine. This brutal attack has rightly provoked sanctions from the EU and others. These sanctions are acknowledged as not being cost free for those of us living in the EU. Their impact on any recovery must be seriously considered.

The Covid recognition payment is provided for specifically in the Bill. The manner in which the payment has been dealt with has been shocking. The payment was dangled in front of workers at the coalface of the Covid crisis. Many were led to believe they would qualify for the bonus, and justifiably so given the rumblings and murmurs that were coming from Ministers. However, they were then told by a variety of Ministers they would not qualify and it would only be a select and small group of healthcare professionals, who are absolutely deserving, who would receive the payment. The way this was done was very unfair. The Government led workers right up the garden path. It should have been clear and upfront from the very start. It should have been straight with workers to tell them who would qualify, how they would qualify and when it would be paid instead of leaving all of these questions in the air.

People feel they were told they were going to qualify only then to be told they would not. This is very much true in the case of family carers. We all know the work they do. We see them in our constituency offices. More often, we speak to them on the phone because very often they cannot get out to visit us in our constituency offices. They deserve recognition for the additional work they have had to undertake in the past two years. Practically all supports were withdrawn. Carers were left very isolated. They really are the forgotten of our front-line workers. They protect our health service on an ongoing basis. If the Minister recalls, in March 2020, the cry from the Government and the Opposition benches was to protect the health services at all costs. These people did so. They absolutely protected the health services by staying inside and minding their loved ones on their own. The world of a family carer is very small. Their world got even smaller. The Minister should consider rewarding them because in their own way they were on the front line.

See this speech in context