Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to have the opportunity to acknowledge the Government's achievement in delivering such an extensive and expansive budget. This happens not by accident but by design. It happens when there is constant and ongoing international investment and a progressive taxation system which rewards work and generates revenue. Those have put us in a position to deliver this budget.

The Government has played a pivotal role in leading and ensuring the State responded to the challenges presented in recent years by Brexit, the Covid pandemic and the ongoing issues associated with the cost-of-living crisis. We have assisted businesses and families and have assisted State bodies and the public services in ensuring that response was sufficient. The budget overshoots the 5% net spending increase year to year by only 1.1% and, in doing so, strikes a balance that will counteract a decreasing but potentially debilitating inflation rate. The commitment on tax was alluded to by the previous speaker, in relation to a €1.3 billion package. I am glad to see Fianna Fáil’s influence has ensured lower paid workers were especially rewarded and considered in the package provided yesterday.

On the core spending increase of €5.3 billion, it must meet the costs to stand still while accommodating the challenge of increased demographics and an increased and ageing population, ensuring we can cater for new teachers and SNAs and remaining conscious of the 22,000 extra workers who have joined the health service in recent years.

Garda numbers have been increased to the figure required to meet the demand in communities and to do so in a way that improves the lot of the trainees who put themselves forward by providing better pay for them during that period in the development of their career. We have ensured, at a cost, that we can stand still and we have recognised the recurring health overrun over years, which is partly due to the new services provided in health. While we are still not meeting the demands we would like to meet, we are striving to do so. We are now left with the task of ensuring there is prioritisation by those in power and in government to meet the commitments made in the programme for Government, especially the commitments to look after those who cannot look after themselves to the extent that others can, for example, people with disabilities, pensioners and carers, to assist families with education costs and to address deficiencies in agriculture, including, as has been alluded to, specifically targeting the sheep sector. The package on taxation is geared towards young workers.

The budget also recognises that the cost associated with delivering a national development plan over the next four years is greater than was envisaged three years ago owing to increases in interest rates and the cost of construction and the delays associated with planning. There is provision of €2.25 billion from windfall corporation tax receipts to address a 6.5% to 10% increase across the next four years. The Government has shown the foresight not to be selfish and, rather than looking after everything and everybody using insufficient non-recurring funds from corporation tax, it has instead put in place a sovereign wealth fund and Ireland’s future fund. It will use funding from these to address the low-carbon economy and the demands that will be placed on many sectors as a result of the commitments we have made there. This has been done to make an investment that will yield a return and provide for that spending to be met even in the event of a downturn.

The summer economic statement was made in the House earlier in the year. The only change since, apart from the headline rates and commitments, has been a slowdown in the revenues associated with corporation tax. We have been mindful of that.

The Opposition homes in on housing, despite the record level of funding for initiatives aimed at various cohorts that need help and assistance, including Croí Cónaithe, the first homes scheme and assistance with deposits. There is record funding to local authority housing associations. Targets can be met. Maybe they could be met quicker but the issue with addressing those targets is the time it takes to deliver them. The greatest logjam and obstacle to delivery is in planning.

I impress upon members of all parties and none in the Dáil the need to participate, engage, scrutinise and improve the legislation being brought forward in the form of the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2023. This will present many opportunities for Members to address a planning system that has created a huge logjam preventing the development of housing, infrastructure and, ultimately, the betterment of the people we represent. We have to recognise the failures associated with An Bord Pleanála not having statutory time periods to issue decisions and also with the practice whereby those who take actions have been awarded costs against the victors in court. Our courts system, right the way up to the Supreme Court, is holding up development. That non-financial intervention in the market will challenge many here, if housing is to be addressed in the way it can and should be with the money provided by this Government in recent years.

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