Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute on the Bill. I echo the words of Deputy Ó Cathasaigh. The budget is fair and equitable and has shown that the Government is acutely aware of the pressures this cost-of-living crisis has placed on people. The rising cost of living is ever prevalent, but there is recognition of that through the movement on social welfare rates, for example. It is the largest increase in well over a decade and certainly the largest in my time - almost 12 years - in this House. There have been increases to parent's benefit, the core weekly payments, which I mentioned, and the working family payment, as Deputy Ó Cathasaigh rightly pointed out, in addition to an increase to the domiciliary care allowance. There have also been changes to PRSI treatment for those in receipt of the national minimum wage. A fact of which I am very proud is that this is the ninth occasion on which this Government, of which I am a supporter, has increased the minimum wage. Come January, that increase will kick in.

Of course, the biggest part of the budget was the one-off supports to cover families and individuals against the rising cost of living, including the increase in the fuel allowance. Hundreds of thousands of people across the State will benefit from one-off payments in areas such as carer's allowance, living alone allowance, double payments of SUSI grants, the waiving of SUSI fees and the working family payment. Those are on top of the recognition of the rising costs of getting around in light of increases in the cost of diesel, other fuel and other transport costs.

I listened to the entirety of the debate thus far from my office. It would be remiss of me not to mention the doublespeak I have heard from the Opposition, specifically Sinn Féin, this evening. Its alternative budget does not even come up to the bar that has been set in this social welfare budget by the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, and the rest of the Cabinet. It is indicative of a party that has been found, yet again, to be a dollar short in its ambition. The Government has set out a budget that has supported and insulated hundreds of thousands of people across the State. We have never claimed that we will be able to cover all cost-of-living increases but we have done our best to ensure that the money we have available thanks to the prudent economic management of the State through the past decade has been brought home in the run-up to Christmas in ensuring that families across the country receive the benefits they so rightly deserve.

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