Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is astonishing that they want to talk about decreasing the price of fuel now, all of a sudden. They are very sympathetic to the people now. We have an economic crisis as far as people are concerned. The Minister has not shown any respect or leeway to alleviate that concern. The price of fuel at the pumps is phenomenal and the people of rural Ireland have no choice. There are 2.2 million vehicles in this country. They have no choice. I have no choice in order to come here to the Dáil except to use a vehicle. I would like to use public transport. We do not have a train within 85 miles of where I live. We have one bus that leaves in the morning. I tell the Minister that constantly. It does not change. It leaves at 7.30 a.m. and returns at about 6 p.m. That is a great transport service. We are told we are lucky to have it. I will not slate everything that goes on. A new service has started in Castletownbere that goes into Bantry. I am not here to discredit people when credit is due. It is a great service. I believe the Skibbereen service to Ballydehob and Killarney is good too but I give more credit to the other because it is for the working people. It picks people up and it is being used but the Minister is not willing to spread that out. The people of Dunmanway, Clonakilty and Drinagh have no service. The people of Mizen Head have one service in the morning, as I said. The Minister does not care what we have because he knows he can steal out of the people’s pockets tomorrow morning at O’Meara’s petrol pump in Goleen, Lowertown creamery, Brosnans in Schull or Camiers in Ballydehob because they have to dig deep to drive their cars every morning. They have no choice in the matter. The Minister has no sympathy. The Government has brought in this mini budget, it is no bloody wonder that half its Deputies in the country are running scared out of this Dáil. They are all afraid to face the country. They are afraid to face what they are going to face. They deserve that but of course they are cowardly. They have not faced the people. They are running because the Government has turned its back on people. It has not given back the money to the roads. The roads in west Cork are in scandalous condition. I am getting it in the neck from people whose cars are being broken every day outside the Spar shop in Skibbereen. It is as though trenches have been dug for a warzone. It is insane around Clonakilty. I can name one after another. TII told the Minister there would be deaths in this country because of underspend. He said nothing but tomorrow morning, he will penalise the ordinary mother, father, farmer and haulier. He will kick them as he kicked them in September because Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael pat him on the back and back him up.

The Minister will kick them again next March, April or May. What is wrong with him? Do the Government Deputies not understand that you do not punish people, you work with people for change? The Minister has no intention of doing that. He wants to crucify people into further difficulties. People are telling me they cannot afford this. So the Government shoved on the hospitality VAT a month ago when 9% became 13.5%. Hit them again in the pocket. For the past two or three weeks, the leaks about the budget from this Government were scandalous. There is no need to have a budget any more, just leak it away every two or three weeks when they come back from the summer break, because that is what happens anyway. People will pay €19 extra for a 900-litre fill of oil for the tank to heat themselves. Has the Minister any respect for anybody? They pay for the car, they pay for the tractor, for the petrol and the diesel, and the home heating oil. There is nearly another €1 on the bag of coal, and that cannot be lit without a gallon of petrol into the fire with it. Has he no understanding of what is going on? The Minister is quite happy, because the people I represent, the people of rural Ireland who put me in here to fight their cause, are the people who will get him out of where he is. I can guarantee that. They are livid, furious, and rightly so. This budget did not help many of them today. It certainly did not help the working man and woman. They will be crucified tomorrow morning at the petrol pump. Every time I travel up and down, diesel has gone up when I leave west Cork, and when I come back it has gone up again. It is time to stop. People have had enough of this dictatorial Government and Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael patting the Minister on the back, praising him and helping him to crucify the ordinary farmer, haulier, mother and father. They ought to be ashamed for backing the Minister. There is little or no public transport service in our county. It is a sad picture. The Minister had many years to put that right. He can say he ran one from Ardgroom to Bantry, and thank God he did, and to Kilcrohane but little more. Plenty of places have no public transport service at all even though I have one, at 7.30 in the morning and 6 p.m. which is a farcical joke. It is time the Minister woke up. Do not penalise people when it is not their fault. Penalise people when services are put in place. If they do not use the services then hit them then. That is not the case here.

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