Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

I am not sure if the Minister saw the student protests yesterday but the slogan they had was "It's raining now" - I think it is raining right now. In other words, there is no excuse for the Government not acting to protect people from the cost-of-living crisis and the housing crisis at a time when there is a very significant surplus. There is no excuse whatsoever and that is the message that will be heard loud and clear from the Cost of Living Coalition protest at 1 o'clock this Saturday on Parnell Square.

We were the ones pointing out that relying on Ireland's model as a corporate tax haven and big corporation tax receipts is not a sustainable model; I agree entirely. However, the question is whether to use those windfalls now to invest in capital expenditure by building a State construction company and investing in climate adaptation, such as retrofitting, solar panels, renewable power and so on. We should make capital investment but, in doing so, shift our economy onto a different track.

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