Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

I want to start by welcoming Deputy Boyd Barrett back to the House. It is wonderful to see you back healthy and well. You spoke with enormous candour and bravery publicly, which has helped many people who are experiencing cancer in their own lives or their families’ lives. I acknowledge that. It is great to have you back. You are certainly back in action, and I look forward to our engagement later on today.

On the local property tax, it is important to speak first about the Future Forty report, which sets out the wider economic and fiscal scenarios and the broader risks and megatrends that could crystallise over the coming decades. We know demographics are changing. Deputy Cullinane’s party leader, Deputy Mary Lou McDonald, previously said that demographics will look after themselves, which shows the short-termist approach of their party when it comes to economic management and its inability to see the strategic long-term risks in our economy.

As we see from alternative budget scenarios, the Opposition wants to abolish the property tax, narrow our overall position on taxation and increase expenditure. This presents serious risks for our economy. The local property tax is a key source of funding for many local authorities across our country. It pays for services and amenities in each local area. It is a progressive tax linked directly to the value of properties. Higher-value properties are subject to a higher tax. By law, the local property tax is revalued every five years. There is ongoing work in the context of the local property tax changes from 2026 to 2030.

It is important that we have a broad-based taxation system as we plan for dealing with the long-term effects on the economy. All Deputy Cullinane has given is a platitude of negativity and attacks against the Government, but very little in terms of solutions as to how his party plans to pay for what must be paid for in the medium to long term. Sinn Féin must be honest about how it would manage the economy and pay for all the commitments and promises it is making across nearly every area of government. Its statements are not credible and that is why the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, made changes in the context of the local property tax, including the widening of the bands. In the absence of any change to valuation bands or rates, there would have been a much bigger increase in the overall local property tax.

That is why a significant number of homeowners will remain in their present bands for 2026 to 2030. The new annual charge for many households could be between €5 and €25 higher. We know there is discretion at local authority level to reduce or amend the local property tax depending on the decision of each local authority. That is why there has been significant work by the Department of Finance in terms of how it manages this self-assessed tax. The bands have been broadened and the Government did take measures in the budget to protect working families. The social protection budget, which the Sinn Féin leader dismissed yesterday, is €2 billion. The Deputy says it is insignificant. It is a significant, progressive and targeted intervention for those most in need in our society.

It is not credible to attack every area of taxation and then to attack every area of expenditure for it not being enough. Sinn Féin's position on the economy would seriously undermine the foundations of our State and undermine the future. We all need to be honest-----

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