Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)

What does the Minister say about the promise he made to workers when he begged them for their vote? He promised he would cut their taxes. In his manifesto, he campaigned on that and he broke that promise over and over again. With this vote, he now has the opportunity to do something that is positive, that is progressive and that is about reducing the burden on people here and now. The Minister says he wants to do this, that, and the other. Fine Gael has been in government for 14 years. It is the party that has created the housing crisis. The solutions they come up with, over and over again, dig deep into the pockets of workers and provide these benefits to developers and institutional investors. It has failed in the past and it will fail in the future.

What the Minister should be doing is building public houses on public land. That is what he should do and with this amendment the Minister can live up to the promise he made - one of many promises he broke to the public - and do the right thing. He should do as he said before the election and reduce taxes on workers. He should be honest. As the Minister said, if you do not adjust income taxes, it is the same as saying there will be tax rises. That is what he is delivering to people today who cannot even afford to pay their electricity and gas bills. Shame on the Minister.

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