Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the fact this motion has been brought and the opportunity people had in the industry, whether in pubs, cafés, restaurants or hairdressers. Many are from our own constituencies and many of us have been contacted by them over a considerable period in that regard. As my colleague said, Sinn Féin had a budget proposal for a €250 million PRSI rebate scheme on the basis of what we saw as the issue.

Getting to the crux of the matter, first and foremost we are seeking to commission a short review to establish the appropriate VAT rate for the hospitality sector. There will be an awful lot of toing and froing with regard to the hospitality sector and we know the subsectors that are being absolutely hammered at this point. We could all list multiple business owners who have contacted us regarding the severe pressure they are under because of the high cost of business. We have pushed at many stages to make sure there are adequate supports. We have seen some supports but talking to anybody on the street yesterday, they would have said all of it is insufficient.

At the same time they speak about the fact their businesses are thriving from the point of view of demand; that is not a problem. People want to eat in their restaurants and drink in their bars. Beyond that, people need to get their hair cut. Hairdressing is not something that will go out of business any time soon. Maybe I will not have such a need into the future but that is another kettle of fish.

I was contacted by the owners of the Camelot Bar and the Market Bar in Drogheda. Yesterday, I met the owners of Kennedys and the Seatown, and Byrne's of No. 10 also made contact with me. I attended a number of GAA events and alongside being contacted by Jacinta Kierans of Hodgins Hair Design in Drogheda, the owner of Eclips did not waste the opportunity of dealing with me when he had me there, and assumed I would be attending the event, which I was. It is very difficult to make sure I had made contact with all of those business owners, there was just such a throng of people, so that tells us the issues that exist at this point.

I have had huge interactions over the past while where the owner of Ma Brady's went through the ins and outs of the particular costs he is going through. Recently The Food House closed down in Dundalk. That was a huge business on Clanbrassil Street in Dundalk. The owner of Ma Brady's has reopened it as The Brassil and we wish him well into the future but it is fair to say he would say there needs to be moves and changes or we will be talking about greater numbers of closures. The last thing we need to see is a greater level of businesses closing and derelictions in our towns that are under severe pressure.

We know this Government is coming towards the end of its days. I would like that to happen sooner rather than later. We have to do whatever can be done to address these issues and whether that happens now or with the next government, we need to make sure these businesses are given those necessary supports. I also had some disappointing news relating to Cooley Distillery and the possibility of jobs being lost next year. I would like to think the Minister of State's Department will have engagement with the owners because we are talking about a long-term employer. I also brought up the issue with the Taoiseach that we have had the closure of Wassdell, which was a pharma packaging company, and we hope we will have good news relating to PCI Pharma Services, but we have seen the reports about WuXi and the possible closure of its European facilities. We have a major pharma facility in Dundalk. Not only does there need to be engagement but we need to see some sort of clarity around that. I do not want to frighten anyone but we need to make sure the engagement is at its best from the point of view that we ensure we can maintain these facilities and as much of this business as possible.

I commend those who brought the motion forward. We really need to address the issues facing SMEs, particularly small businesses, across the length and breadth of Ireland.

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