Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk on this budget, which has been awaited by many people around the country to see if they will benefit from it. All of us here might do it differently but we have to go by the amount of money the Government has to spend, and the choices it makes about how to spend it is what we have to go through. There are many things that are welcome and a good few things that I am disappointed with.

We welcome the capitation grant for schools because we know many principal teachers are funding things themselves, which is not fair. They have been very good. I know it has happened in Kerry.

While we as a group asked for the abolition of the means test for the carer's allowance, the Government is committed to doing it on a phased basis. We would prefer if it had been implemented all in one go, because those people are vital for the people they are caring for, first of all, and they are doing tremendous work for the State in seeing after people who need care. It should not be treated as a social welfare payment, as carers are working hard, day and night, taking care of their loved ones and saving the State billions of euro.

Nothing has been done for the ever-increasing cost of electricity. I have said day after day that since Bord na Móna was abolished in 2020 or thereabouts, the cost of electricity has gone up daily, and it does not come down. I am wondering where the energy regulator is. Is it there at all? I do not think it is. Elderly people are afraid to turn on the heating because of the cost of electricity and are suffering and perishing in the cold. Costs have gone through the roof. People are in fear of having their electricity turned off. They cannot afford to pay their bills. Many people are behind on paying their bills.

The running costs of small businesses, including electricity, insurance, rates, water charges and staff, are high. While we welcome the minimum wage being increased for low-paid workers, the Government cannot claim any part of this, because employers have to pay the extra employment costs. It will not cost the Government a penny, which we have to remember.

I am disappointed because, as I said last week, we do not seem to be doing enough at all for working-class people. I attended a party last Friday week where ten local people, grand boys and girls from the age of 24 or 25 to 31 or 32, were having a party because they are all leaving, going to Australia before Christmas. I am sad and hurt about that because they had great jobs, were highly educated and were a real asset to our country. We cannot afford to lose those kinds of people. Their parents went through a lot and they went through a lot themselves to get properly educated, but the main reason they are going is because they cannot see themselves ever being able to purchase a new home in Ireland or Kerry. They cannot build one because of the planning restrictions, which there is no need for. Those issues could be addressed. Give them planning. There was a mention of legalising granny flats or building onto the back of houses. Where is that?

To see these working people go out early in the morning and work at nights, and continue to pay all the costs, their taxes, and high fuel costs to get to work, to get nothing in return from the Government, is not fair. They do not qualify for a medical card or benefit in any way. The working people are getting disheartened. Many say to me that they would be better off at home, by the fire, drawing some kind of a payment because as they are, they have nothing left at the end of the week and they do not qualify for anything. That is not right. They are saying that they would be better off not working. It is disappointing to hear that because the work ethic is in the Irish people and they should be rewarded for it.

I welcome the fuel allowance for those families on income supplement who will now qualify for it. I asked this before of Heather Humphreys when she was Minister. Why are those on benefits, who have paid their fair share of taxes, still not eligible for fuel allowance, jobseeker's benefit, which they do not qualify for, illness benefit or maternity benefit? Why is this the case? A person at home sick is not eligible for fuel allowance. A mother with a young baby is not eligible for fuel allowance. This is unfair.

There is very little in the budget for farmers who have increasing costs. I see the increase for ACRES but the problem with that is that they are not being paid on time. Go back to 2023 when people were supposed to be paid. They have still not even been paid today as we are talking. I cannot understand that.

There is €20 million extra for 17,000 sheep farmers. I welcome that. There is €85 million for TB. Will the Government do something about TB? We are overrun with badgers and deer, and they are spreading TB. Badgers are being vaccinated, but cattle are not. Why can we not vaccinate cattle against TB and get rid of it once and for all? Cattle are going down all around me in east and south Kerry. I heard earlier the news that more gone down in Kilgarvan today. Something will have to be done. We are talking here about the production of food that is important to every one of us, even people who have never been on a farm. It is important for those people to have food. It is expensive enough but if we have to import it, then we will know what the cost is.

I welcome the VAT reduction relating to apartments. We certainly need to build more apartments and more houses. People have also been asking about the first-time buyers grant they get to buy or build a new house. People are still first-time buyers when they are buying second-hand houses. Could the grant not be extended to those individuals? Maybe the Minister will think about doing that, particularly as it is important for those people. People are leaving our shores mainly to put a roof over their heads. This is because they cannot see themselves ever doing it here. I am asking the Minister of State to at least consider that. It would be something for those people if they could buy second-hand homes and get the same assistance as if they were buying new homes.

I am glad in a way that Deputy Doherty referred to me earlier, but he was incorrect in what he said. He said that I voted for the carbon tax. On any day that I was in here, I never did so. Sinn Féin did, but maybe he is forgetting about that. Maybe he would have been better advised to run for President or some similar office where he could have had someone going around with him and reminding him of what he did or did not say and what he did or did not do. I did not vote for the carbon tax. I am paying more for carbon than any other expense I have, and that is God's gospel truth.

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