Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister does not get this. He proceeded with one increase last month, which was the wrong thing to do at the wrong time again. Now he s planning for and has legislated for this increase in 70 days and legislated for a further increase two months later. It is not just those people who are struggling. It is not just the people who have to fill their tanks. Every time they put a litre of petrol into their car €1 goes to the State. This is the tax on petrol at this point in time. It is just about those people, however. I asked numerous times about the businesses in my community. There are more than 300 Border businesses and forecourts. Many of them are family businesses and they support countless families in the community. Kids are being sent to college because they are working in these businesses, either on the petrol forecourts or in the adjoining shops. These people tell me very clearly that if this increase goes ahead and if the Minister continues to do what he did last month, they do not see their forecourt businesses surviving because a couple of miles down the road someone can buy a litre of petrol for 20 cent cheaper. Perhaps the Minister would have the detail as to when was the last time we had a price difference as big as we have now? At the minute it is 15 cent. There are people who are not coming to these stores because of the price of petrol. The finance minister in Britain decided to extend their reduction for a year. I call on the Minister to do what we have asked him to do from day one, which is to keep it under review. The prices are going in the wrong direction, families are struggling, businesses are worried whether they will be able to survive and he has legislated for not one but two increases, yet he will still not give a commitment here that he will not go ahead with it. Instead he says the same thing that every Minister for Finance says, which is " We will keep all taxes under review".

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