Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Finance Bill 2022. I acknowledge the Minister's continued management of our economy, especially in challenging times, which has enabled us to make an €11 billion intervention without borrowing - a substantial achievement - while also placing an additional €2 billion aside this year and a further €4 billion next year in a reserve fund to protect Ireland from shocks in the future. Given the difficult winter that is facing us all, I welcome the progressive measures contained within this Bill, which are designed to ensure that those in society who are most impacted by rising bills and inflationary pressures, along with the squeezed middle, are supported in what is an enormous cost-of-living budget. This Bill has Fine Gael's fingerprints all over it. I also welcome the contributions of the coalition Government partners.

No one across our society has avoided the difficulties posed by rising costs. The Government cannot insulate everyone fully from them. Those difficulties are set to get more acute as we approach the end of the year and the start of the new one. However, €1.2 billion has been allocated for supports to help consumers over this year and next year, which is a hugely important step. Chapter 3 will give rise to a reduction in the amount of tax that workers pay, putting more hard-earned money back into people's pockets, with a fairer income tax package for all. The increase in the standard rate of cut-off for a single person, from €36,800 to €40,000, will certainly assist middle-income workers across the board.

Section 12 sets out a really positive measure that introduces a new tax credit for renters that is worth €500 per renter, and €1,000 for couples. Thankfully, the €500 tax credit will also be extended to parents who pay rent on behalf of their sons and daughters attending third level education, which will also ease their burden.

Section 5 supports our housing policy to extend the help-to-buy scheme for a further two years.

It is an essential step that has already helped over 36,000 householders to date. Of those, 728 have availed of the scheme in Mayo alone, which has assisted those who were finding it difficult to get onto the property ladder.

The announcement of the extension of the tax incentive under section 481 until 2028 is very welcome but there is no extension of the regional uplift programme, which proved valuable in bringing productions outside of the Dublin and Wicklow hubs. The uplift has seen considerable production activities across the country, from Kerry to Donegal. I continue to advocate for its return in some form, especially as my county has an opportunity to benefit.

I join colleagues in asking for further consideration to be given to the impending changes to benefit-in-kind calculations on company vehicles due to come into effect at the start of 2023. Many constituents have contacted me and outlined that the timing and justification for this measure are completely inappropriate, given the cost-of-living pressures through which we are currently going.

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