Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent) | Oireachtas source

As the Head of Government, will the Taoiseach explain to the people why the Government continues to take VAT on goods and services that are at an inflated rate? I will break it down into three simple examples and explain to him how his Government is crippling businesses in the country, putting our householders into poverty and going to drive the country into a recession.

The first example is one I gave him last year but I will give it again. The tax the Government takes on fuel, which is €57 of every €100, is based on tax once you break down all the different charges. At that time, I and the Rural Independents asked the Taoiseach to cap the price on which the Government would tax fuel. We understand the Government needs tax to run the country but it is taking tax at an inflated rate and getting in more earnings.

The second example is the cost of electricity. We saw recently that for the first six months of the year the ESB made a profit of €390 million. Over 12 months that will be €780 million. Under the laws that are there, the Government will automatically take 12% of that, which equates to approximately €93.6 million. The Government will take 12% in tax as it does from any company that makes a profit. The Government reduced the VAT on electricity to 9% but its intake is still up 30% on this time last year. I will break this down to simple brass tacks for the Taoiseach. Last year, a householder who used 1,341 units at a price of 13.2 cent per unit had a bill of €244.03. The same person today for the same usage will pay a bill, including VAT, of €457.83. The Government's 9% VAT take on that bill alone is up 30% on this time last year, so the Government loves inflation. Everyone else in this country is on the poverty line trying to survive. A business that had a €600,000 electricity bill last year is now faced with a €2.7 million charge this year. It employs 100 people and has told me it is not viable. Every business in the country is under pressure to put food on the table and keep the employment they have and our Government's VAT take on energy is up 30%. The Government is the only business in this country that is up 30%. Everyone else is down 30% as they try to keep people at work and have children go to school and college. What does the Government do? It has 30% more than it had this time last year.

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