Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. The Labour Party certainly believes in constructive and responsible opposition but we are a party of the left. We believe in the need to ensure investment in public services for all. We do not believe in tax cuts for some at the expense of public services for all. That is our concern. Our concern is that during the pandemic we saw, rightly, the State stepping up to deliver investment. We need to see that level of ambition now in addressing the housing crisis and cost-of-living crisis.

We have welcomed some Government measures but we have also been critical, rightly, when they do not go far enough. For example, the Government's Sick Leave Bill 2021 will leave low-paid workers out of pocket and its flexible work legislation essentially offers employers a right to refuse flexible work options. While we welcomed the Government's proposals on the living wage, they do not go as far as the Labour Party's Bill. Our concern is that people have no more to give.

I express solidarity with the striking Bausch + Lomb workers in Waterford. One striking worker there stated that this winter they will be forced to leave the heat off and put on an extra jumper. They are seeking a pay rise to tide them and their families over. The Government is simply not ambitious enough to deliver the real solutions that are needed to address the cost-of-living crisis for those workers and others.

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