Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I agree with her first point, that is, food prices have increased. Any person doing his or her weekly shop can see that clearly. I can see it myself. I was in a shop only yesterday and could see where the price of many products had increased, such as for example, nappy wipes. The consumer is looking for special offers but there are not as many special offers as there were. There are fewer items in the basket, yet it still costs more. I recognise that the cost of the weekly shop has increased.

However, the Deputy is trying to portray the Government as sitting on its hands and doing nothing, but that is not the case. We have provided billions of euro in support last year and this year to help people. Only a couple of weeks ago, my Department issued a further €200 lump sum payment to our pensioners, carers, people on disability payments and those on the working family payment. As the Minister for Social Protection, my priority is to look after vulnerable groups like our pensioners and carers. That is why we had the double payment for pensioners last year and a €500 for carers and people with disabilities. It is also why we extended the fuel allowance for the over-70s and increased core social welfare payments by €12, the largest increase since 2000.

Sometimes, the Deputy will have to ask herself who pays for this. I will tell her who pays for it – the workers of this country, the taxpayers, the people who get up every day to do their day’s work. They are the ones the Deputy forgets about when she calls in the Dáil for more spending here and there. That is not the way the world works. Someone has to pay for it.

I want to support the people who pay for everything. That is why, in a couple of weeks’ time,-----

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