Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to have an opportunity to speak on the Finance (No. 2) Bill. There were many measures that could have been taken in budget 2024 to relieve some of the burdens currently experienced by families. Unfortunately, opportunities were wasted. While there were some welcome measures included in the budget that had been highlighted as urgent by Sinn Féin, there were other measures that could have been introduced that would be of more benefit to those in real need. For example, the taxation measures are structured in a way that dilutes the benefits to those in real need. When the overall tax package is measured, the annual benefit for someone earning €35,000 is €308, while for someone on €100,000 per year, the saving amounts to €867. This disparity in savings is a clear misstep if the Government really wants to assist those in need.

The one-off measures that were included in the budget, while welcome, are temporary in nature. Once they are gone, they are gone and the individuals or families concerned are back to square one. They are left with their pay packet, which could have been given more of a benefit if the Government had not chosen to dilute the benefits by providing for the better off. Sinn Féin's package, which proposed increasing tax credits, cutting the first rate of USC from 0.5% to 0%, cutting the second rate from 2% to 1% and increasing the entry point to the third rate, would have made for a fairer tax package by focusing on those who are lower paid and giving them the break they need. I have a real concern that the Government's tax package was more focused on the optics of the sums involved rather than providing the benefits people need the most.

I refer to an issue that is of importance to many people I have spoken to in County Tipperary. I acknowledge that the Minister finally saw sense and realised that the temporary excise rate on auto diesel, petrol and marked gas oil needed to be extended. It took a considerable amount of pressure to force him into that decision. While that pressure caused him to act, he still drove up the cost of petrol and diesel in October by increasing the carbon tax, with a further hike due in May 2024. Many of the families affected are the same ones who cannot access the retrofitting scheme because their financial means exclude them from it. These families face added costs because of the carbon tax increase, yet they are also the ones who benefit the least from the carbon tax.

Renters were sidelined again, with the sum of the Government's measures benefiting landlords more than renters. While Sinn Féin would have put a month's rent back into renters' pockets through a refundable tax credit, the Minister provided greater relief to landlords than to renters.

All in all, this budget has confirmed to us all that the Government does not have the appetite for a fairer Ireland. Landlords will pay less tax than nurses, individuals on higher incomes will benefit more than those on lower pay and climate action schemes remain accessible only to those who have the money to spend. A chance to make a difference was wasted and squandered. We need change. The people of Tipperary need change.

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