Dáil debates

Wednesday, 19 October 2016

Financial Resolutions 2017 - Financial Resolution No. 2: General (Resumed)

 

Debate resumed on the following motion:

- (Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade).

9:55 pm

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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This is the second night in a row that I am on the graveyard shift, having taken us up to midnight last night. One's chances of getting on "Oireachtas Report" must be increased if one speaks before the programme is broadcast, so I might get some coverage tonight.

I outlined last night my general welcome for the budget and the progress we have made in recent years. I compared this budget with some of the budgets that were introduced in the last part of the previous decade and the early part of this decade. In my sixth year in the House, I gladly welcome budget 2017 compared with what we had in 2011.

We have come a long way. We have a long way to go, but we are certainly moving in the right direction. Last night, I mentioned the progress we have made in areas like social protection, housing and the 9% VAT rate for tourism and hospitality.

The possible equalisation of diesel and petrol prices, which was discussed publicly prior to the budget, caused a great deal of concern for me and for many people in my constituency. As a rural dweller and a representative of a rural constituency in this House, I feel such an anti-rural move would represent a major step backwards. Many people have invested in diesel cars and other diesel vehicles for environmental and economic reasons. Any move by the Government to change the current policy in this regard would be detrimental. It is not something I would welcome. I am glad the Government listened to our concerns and decided there would be no diesel excise increase in this budget. I hope that will also be the case in future budgets. This would have been a very negative development at a time when insurance premiums are skyrocketing and the general cost of motoring is increasing. I am glad it did not happen. The recent decision by OPEC to cut production could lead to a further increase in oil prices in the time ahead. That is not something we can ignore. I am glad this proposal was not pursued in last week's budget. I hope it will be shelved in future budgets because it would have a detrimental impact on the agricultural sector and on hauliers. It would be a retrograde step and I am glad it is not happening.

I want to mention some of the measures that were taken in the budget in respect of agriculture. The introduction of the sheep scheme is a positive move because it represents a major step forward in animal welfare and, in particular, will result in a welcome injection of cash for rural areas. This is a welcome new development for sheep farmers in some of the most challenging terrain in the country, who have been very hard-pressed in recent years. I look forward to its implementation. Having spoken to people in my constituency last weekend, I know it has been warmly received. It is a major step in the right direction. The loan scheme for farmers is also quite timely and most helpful in light of the huge pressures many farmers are under. I anticipate that there will be a very high takeup of this scheme. It will be of assistance in these difficult and uncertain times, particularly in the context of Brexit. I am sure it will be availed of. The provision for the expansion of the green low-carbon agri-environment scheme is also most welcome. This was a good budget for agriculture and for farmers at a very challenging time. The reversal of the cuts in farm assist that were previously imposed is also welcome. I am pleased that there will now be increased opportunities for participation in the rural social scheme. Many people in my constituency would have suffered as a result of those measures. It is quite fitting that they have now been addressed. It will make life easier for people.

While the reduction of half a percentage point in the 1%, 3% and 5.5% universal social charge rates is to be welcomed, I would have preferred to have seen greater decreases. Nevertheless, this is a step in the right direction. I maintain that further cuts would generate further revenue for the Exchequer and would lead to a greater return. In many parts of this country where the improving economy has not come fully across the threshold, people's tax burden is seriously hampering their spending power and their ability to live with any degree of comfort. I feel our tax policy could address this quite speedily. I understand the point that there is an initial outlay when it comes to things like reductions in the universal social charge, but I feel there would be a greater benefit from such reductions in this instance. It would reduce the cost of employment and make work more rewarding. It would bring down replacement rates and make it easier for people to spend and contribute to further economic growth. I would like to see the trend of reductions in the universal social charge continuing in future budgets. I hope the 0.5% rate will be abolished next year. We might also see serious movement on the 2.5% rate, as it will be in 2017. This would be a major help. I think we need to pursue such reductions because the lowest earners would be the highest beneficiaries. This will not be possible without prudent economic management and continued growth. That is why it is important for us to keep going in the direction we are going by managing things well.

The last few years have been very difficult for the education sector. Thankfully, we have been able to spend more in recent budgets. It is fantastic that 2,400 additional teachers will come on stream in the coming year. Every cent we invest in the Department of Education and Skills is well spent because it is invested in the future of this country and its people. We will get a massive return on it. Outside of the human aspect of giving people a great start and every opportunity in life, the economic side of it is that money spent on education is a good investment. It is something we should continue to do. I would like to see further efforts made to reduce the thresholds, especially in small rural schools. I spent my first five years in this House fighting the Department and the Minister of the day on the issue of thresholds in rural schools. I felt there was a lack of recognition in the Department of the importance and relevance of such schools. I think we need to do more work on this issue. The value of these schools is not always appreciated by people in officialdom. As a representative of the people, I certainly value small schools and the massive work that is done in such schools in every community in the country. We need to protect and enhance the personalised approach to education that is delivered in small schools. We can do that by reducing the thresholds for teacher allocation. We need to do more on four-teacher and three-teacher schools, in particular, because the thresholds are too high and need to revert to pre-2012 levels, at least. There is no need to stop there. We need to drive on further into the future.

It is fantastic that we will reach a record level of expenditure on health in 2017. It was probably unthinkable a few years ago that we would be in this position. Health expenditure needs to be targeted at those areas that can achieve the best results for us. I still think we do not spend enough on protecting people and giving them the ability to live with dignity in their own homes, alone or otherwise. We do not do enough on preventative health measures. We need to do more on that front. We do not spend enough money on home care packages, given that it is money well spent. We end up with problems at acute level when we do not invest in home help, which is so crucial and vital for people. I cannot understand the reluctance to open the purse strings in this respect. I do not know why we are not spending money on something that is so important to people all over this country. I hugely welcome the extension of medical cards to all children in respect of whom domiciliary allowance is being received. It is long overdue. Anyone who is in receipt of domiciliary allowance is getting it for the right reasons and for serious reasons.

This is something I have been advocating for a long time and I am glad it is happening.

I welcome the recruitment of nurses and graduate nurses. However, a particular group of nurses has been left behind. These nurses were previously on temporary contracts, but they have now gone to the back of the queue. A number of constituents have contacted me. They are experiencing difficulty in being recruited. They had been working for 75% of the salary all along. Now, they are at the back of the queue when it comes to recruitment. This needs to be addressed given that we are experiencing difficulties in recruiting nurses. This is an area the Department needs to look at.

I am keen to speak about another issue that has arisen in my constituency. It relates to health care provision, in particular, for disability services, an area which is still chronically under-funded. The model of de-congregation being pursued at present by the Health Service Executive does not fit everyone. There should not be a one-size-fits-all policy. An example in my constituency is St. Mary of the Angels in Beaufort, where all 77 residents have been contacted and offered a move into the community. That is great for the people for whom it is suitable, but for many it will not be suitable. Yet, the policy in place at present is to seek de-congregation. This needs to be changed; there needs to be a middle ground. There needs to be de-congregation but perhaps in a protected and safe setting. For example, it could be done on-campus in St. Mary of the Angels and autonomous living could be provided within the campus. Such a common-sense approach needs to be adopted.

It would be remiss of me not to mention the great progress made in child care. We have come a long way. First, we had the free preschool year and then we had the second free preschool year. Now, we have this year's efforts to reduce the cost of child care for hard-pressed parents. This will further lead to a reduction in replacement rates and will make it more affordable for people to go back to work. It is a step in the right direction. We need to keep going and take further steps in future budgets, but certainly I welcome this measure.

10:15 pm

Photo of Pat GallagherPat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Timmy Dooley is next. I understand you are sharing time.

Photo of Timmy DooleyTimmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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With the permission of the House I intend to share with Deputy Lahart.

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this debate. Like my friend on the opposite benches, I agree that it is unfortunate the debate is taking place at such a late hour. Nonetheless, it is a great opportunity for all of us to have our input and our say in what can only be described as a departure in terms of the way budgets are framed.

I met an experienced journalist this evening at an event. He used to frequent this House. He wondered how we were managing in the new environment. He reflected on the question and said that much of the excitement and buzz had gone out of the budget. That is good. It is a recognition of a maturity developing around this House whereby on this occasion each Member, if he or she wishes, has an opportunity to contribute to the framing of the budget. Now, there are some who chose not to participate at all for party political reasons. They could have signalled their intent to be part of a new dispensation or framework that recognises how minority administrations work in a way that is not to the exclusion of the voices of those elected with such a valuable mandate. However, for naked political reasons these people chose to go into hiding during the course of government formation talks. Effectively they went into exile for that period. There may be some political advantage to that, although I am unsure. I believe it was a betrayal of the people who voted in the election.

I am pleased that the party I represent had the maturity and capacity to work with the Government, made up of Fine Gael and a number of Independents. We have tried insofar as we can to change the course of economic and social policy at a macro level. We are regularly asked about the Fianna Fáil achievement and what the Independents have achieved. I believe we should consider it in a larger sense. We need to look on it at a macro level. We campaigned on a particular platform during the course of the election earlier this year. Much of our emphasis was on investment in public services and overhead reduction in taxation. I am not being critical. This was simply the way the campaign was fought. Those in Fine Gael had a view that the universal social charge should be abolished. In fairness, they recognised that this was not perhaps what the electorate wanted. They have recognised how the electorate has spoken in terms of the support they have given to my party and others. As a result, they engaged in a process that sees us now with something greater than a 2:1 split between investment and tax modification from the €1 billion or €1.2 billion available.

Perhaps there is some argument about where the extra €200 million came about in the latter hours of negotiations but that is water under the bridge now. The fact is that now significant moneys are available to allow Deputies on all sides to make their case for investment in the social, physical, health and capital infrastructure of the State. Furthermore, Deputies can make a case in respect of what to do from a tax or universal social charge reduction point of view. Such proposals were targeted principally at the lower income cohort of the population. To me that is the Fianna Fáil stamp. This stamp or push probably emerged when we achieved considerable support from the electorate last February. That is important.

Whether it was a Pauline conversion on the part of those in Fine Gael or a recognition that an election is not in their interests or in anyone's interests in the short term - it is certainly not in the interests of the country - is irrelevant. The fact is that all Ministers have ended up in a better position because there is a greater capacity now in light of the moneys available to deal with the constraints. I note the Minister and Minister of State present in the House have ambitious targets in their areas. These are areas where there has been a considerable dearth of investment in recent years. Hopefully, the budget will allow them to move ahead with the ambitious projects they have in mind.

The budget is in many ways an opportunity for a government to set out its priorities. Sometimes it is not always possible to secure the desired funding from the Department of Finance to meet a Minister's needs, but the process does give Ministers an opportunity to set out their priorities. I have responsibility as Opposition spokesperson on communications, climate action and environment. I am somewhat disappointed that the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Denis Naughten, has not made more of the opportunity - I recognise the constraints in finance - around the budget to set out his priorities rather than focus on his attachment to spin, which is something to which he has become accustomed.

I was taken by the Minister's recent announcement. One of the first statements he made when he came to office was to the effect that he would not take up the option of introducing a broadcasting charge. That was an option I was ready to support because it was part of our manifesto. As a strong advocate of public service broadcasting I took the view that there was an opportunity to increase the moneys available to support the national broadcaster. I believe that is the right thing to do. I also took the view that there was an opportunity to make available increased moneys in support of an element of public service remit within local radio stations. That has been lobbied for by the independent sector. I was taken by something I read in recent days.

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I hope Deputy Dooley will be open to supporting charging in principle.

Photo of Timmy DooleyTimmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I have been, and I have said to the Minister that I am prepared to accept the principle of a broadcasting charge and that it should be extended to those homes, apartments and other places where people do not contribute. We have been unable to sanction people for evasion. We have a situation whereby approximately 14% of the population do not pay a television licence charge. The evasion rate is as low as 5% in the United Kingdom. Much work remains to be done in this regard.

The Minister now wants to extend this charge to the print media. He is now such a believer in quality journalism that he wants to include the broader media. That will probably get him plenty of good headlines in the print media, but I am not so sure.

He has not increased the pie and does not intend to. Whether he is going to cut funds for sound and vision within the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, BAI or take money from RTE, which the previous Government did, I am not sure, but maybe he will help us on that in the days ahead.

I am somewhat concerned that there has been no action plan to roll out broadband. The Minister has identified approximately €15 million to be made available this year to get consultants in place and roll out the contract, but it will be 2022 or 2023 before the rural broadband scheme will get into those areas where it is not commercially available. That is an appalling vista for those of us who live in rural Ireland. We are struggling to accept 2022 or 2023. We need action rather than numerous announcements.

The same is true of enhancing our mobile telephony services. There is nothing in the budget to suggest that the Minister is serious about putting in place the kind of funds that are needed to ensure our mobile network is fit for purpose. I recently attended an event in Limerick hosted by the Irish Business Employers Confederation, IBEC, with several key employers who want to employ highly skilled, professional, competent and mobile young people. They were adamant that they found it extremely difficult to get staff for research and development facilities in the mid-west because they do not have the mobile connection for the kind of communication these people use. They can get high-speed broadband in the workplace but they could not get an assurance that when these people went home or travelled to and from work, they would have connection for social, leisure or business purposes. The same applies to the southern region outside the main centres of population. That is a real problem. If we tell these people that it will be 2022 or 2023 before broadband is rolled out and mobile connection will lag behind that, we have some real problems.

One area the budget has failed to address is our greenhouse gas emissions. There is some work in respect of insulation of homes, but in the transport sector it was a missed opportunity. If we had taken some of the principles applied in places such as Norway, which are at the leading edge of developing a transport system that is fit for purpose and helps reduce greenhouse gases, we would have eliminated benefit-in-kind for electric vehicles and said they should use bus lanes. We would have created more incentives. We are coming nowhere close to the 2020 targets and we need to accelerate our approach.

10:25 pm

Photo of John LahartJohn Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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As my party’s spokesperson on Dublin I want to focus on measures that do or do not focus on the needs of the people in the capital. While the additional funding for housing in budget 2017 is welcome, I have some concerns about the new home buyers' saving scheme and the omission of measures to help reform the rental market and the absence of reforms to fast-track social housing. From the moment the budget was announced, the first-time buyers’ scheme came under close scrutiny from my party. One result of this proposal will see first-time buyers chasing fewer than 10,000 housing units expected to be built next year. Without any accompanying measures to increase supply`, this help to buy scheme could make the housing crisis worse and lead to the overheating of house prices. As the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government is aware, there is already an anecdotal suggestion that some builders have simply hiked the price of their properties already on the market commensurate with the terms of the scheme being introduced. When supply cannot cope with demand and measures are introduced that promote demand or create the impression that existing house prices are attainable, the Minister has created an incentive for demand that cannot be met in the short term. He is in danger of inflating demand for a stagnant supply. This budget has announced no measures to boost the supply side. Basic economics dictate that when supply cannot meet demand, prices rise, and supply cannot meet demand for houses in the capital.

The average house price in Dublin is €330,000 for a three-bedroom semi-detached house. Apart from giving first-time buyers an incentive to buy, there other factors which influence the price of a house. Site development in Dublin adds an average of €150,000 to each unit price. Levies and professional fees contribute a further €11,750. The initial site cost contributes an average of €57,500 to each housing unit. Sales and marketing costs contribute another €8,200 on average. The average per unit cost of finance for the build is €20,000. VAT adds another €3,900 per unit, leaving a profit per unit of €38,000 and that profit may come many years after the initial investment. There are no measures in this budget that address these supply side issues, that would assist in the release of equity to builders or that encourage off-balance sheet investment. These points have been made by my party colleagues. For a first-time buyer living in the many parts of Dublin where there are no new homes available to buy, this scheme simply does not apply and unfairly favours those first-time buyers who are geographically better located.

I welcome the additional €150 million allocated from the capital budget towards new social housing provision. However, there is nothing in the budget which will bolster local authorities to enable them to deliver on these new housing targets. The councils have been given moneys to provide more housing. Regrettably, the Minister decided in this budget to cut the operational budgets of the local authorities by 7%. These are enabling budgets that empower the councils to draw up the plans, do the drawings, conduct site surveys and so on. Just as the Government increases the budget to address a problem, it creates a different problem by decreasing the funds which enable local authorities to carry out this function. This cut in the operational budget will severely restrict the ability of the four Dublin local authorities not just to provide usual services but also to deliver social housing. If the Dublin local authorities are to deliver increased social housing outputs, they will require much more significant staffing allocations and expertise to increase that housing supply, yet the Government has cut the source of such human resources.

The level of investment secured for transport in budget 2017 does not reflect Dublin’s position as an area of key strategic importance for the economy and society. The M50 is almost at capacity, particularly at peak times, and is beginning to challenge the movement of freight from the port to the rest of the country. It will be three years before the electronic digital display overhead gantries along the M50 will be operational, ensuring that when there is an accident on the M50, and there are many, traffic and the capital will grind to a halt. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport stood by when the National Transport Authority, NTA, announced a cut to the budget for the proposed cycleways planned for Dublin. I was a councillor when these were proposed years ago and they would contribute significantly not only to the tourist attractiveness of the capital but also to making it safe for commuters to travel to work and leisure activities. The city bike scheme is treated by this Minister as some luxurious add-on for the city, and yet anyone can tell that it has become an essential part of the public transport network, displacing taxis and buses throughout the day.

It is long past time this scheme was extended to the suburbs such as Templeogue, Terenure, Rathfarnham, Milltown, Goatstown, Dundrum, Inchicore, Kimmage and Drumcondra, to name a few. City bikes are an integral part of public transport in Dublin and ought to be treated as such.

Dublin is in trouble, yet its potential as a driver for the economy has never been greater. This Government lacks vision when it comes to Dublin. It is barely mentioned in the programme for Government. When it is mentioned in a number of references, it is to do with the amount of investment being made outside the capital. "Dublin" has become a bad word, yet it is the great engine of our economy. The Minister for Education and Skills recently announced that, given the post-Brexit context, the potential for Dublin to take advantage of the international English language education market is now a reality. It always was a reality. It could have been addressed in the years following the crash and yet it is only now, following the collapse of a dozen or so language colleges due to poor regulation and no protection of students, that a paltry investment is being made in a market that is literally worth billions internationally. However, the Government has no plans and no vision for an area that is ripe with growth potential.

Despite all the hyperbole and contrary to what people may believe, things are not beginning to boom in many parts of the capital. Dublin still has the most disadvantaged areas and communities in the country. Life beyond and within the boundaries of the Red Cow roundabout, which is often cited here, is not as Deputies often describe it. Two of the constituencies beyond the Red Cow roundabout are Dublin constituencies. I represent one of them and my colleague, Deputy Curran, represents the other. Two of the most disadvantaged areas in the country are located beyond the Red Cow roundabout.

Income tax receipts fell below anticipated revenue. Corporation tax is performing acrobatically and we will have to monitor it in the coming years. We need new sources of revenue. There are obvious new sources of revenue that could be explored by this Government but the budget fell very short in terms of that requirement.

I am aware that my time is up. I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for giving me the opportunity to contribute.

10:35 pm

Photo of Pat GallagherPat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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There are 20 minutes in the Government slot. I call Deputy Heydon who I understand is sharing his time with-----

Photo of Martin HeydonMartin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Phelan.

Photo of Pat GallagherPat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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Is that agreed? Agreed.

Photo of Martin HeydonMartin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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I am delighted to get the opportunity to speak on budget 2017. Even though we had to wait until this late in the day - one week since the budget was introduced - it is still very important that we get to discuss all the measures because there was so much detail to take in on Tuesday, 11 October, and many different measures that affect different Departments.

I will touch on a number of the measures to which I refer but I will begin by referring to child care. This is an issue that had the Fine Gael imprint all over it, dating back to our manifestos from before the general election in which we set out our desire to expand the child care system to support those who go out to work every day to make a living but who are faced with very significant costs in that regard. Budget 2017 makes a significant investment in child care in order to make it more affordable for those hard-pressed families. A two-pronged approach was taken to this. First, there is the universal element whereby children aged six months to three years are covered in terms of full-time formal child care and will receive support to the value of €960 a year, which is a significant saving for those families. Second, the more targeted approach sees a subsidy scheme for low to middle income earners with children from the age of six to 15 years. That builds on the work Fine Gael would have done in its previous term in office when we introduced the second preschool year for the early childhood care and education scheme, the introduction of the two weeks paternity leave, and free GP care for children under the age of six. In the new child care structure under the Minister, Deputy Zappone, we have a system in which even more investment can be made as we continue to grow the economy, get more people back to work and have more money to play with, so to speak. However, the structure is as important as the significant 15% increase in investment for that sector.

In the social welfare element, there is a €5 increase for those on the old age pension, carers, those with a disabilities, widows, blind persons, lone parents, jobseekers, those in receipt of on maternity and paternity benefit and people on community employment schemes. The increase covers 1.49 million people. For many, this is the first increase they have been given since rates were slashed by €16 by the then Government in 2009. The 85% Christmas bonus for 1.2 million will be an important benefit, not just for those people and their families but also for the businesses that benefit from more cash going into the local economy.

I was on a local radio programme last week with a Sinn Féin Deputy. We debated the issue of young jobseekers benefit and I was criticised for the fact that we had not increased it by the €5, but there was a very good reason for that. It is a pro rataincrease and I do not believe we should be incentivising young people of 18, 19 or 20 years of age who are living at home with their parents and who are not employed or in full-time education to remain on that benefit. That is not what our system should do. I pointed out to the Sinn Féin Deputy that while he was calling for us to give €140 a week instead of €100, it is ironic that these young people's counterparts in Northern Ireland get €64 a week. Leaving that aside, it is important to put on the record that jobseekers under the age of 26 who go back to education get the full adult rate of €193, which was €160 previously. We reward for upskilling, encouraging them to take up training. Joskeekers under the age of 26 have their rent supplement contribution reduced as well, which is another benefit. That comes down to Fine Gael's core value of enterprise, reward and making work pay. That approach is working. There were 90,000 young people on the live register in 2010. That figure is down to 34,000 now and we want it to drop further.

Fairness is a key component of this budget and while cuts in the three lower rates of the USC by 0.5% are not massive, it is another step in the right direction in terms of what we want to do to ease the burden on those working families. Medical cards for the 11,000 children in receipt of domiciliary care is another very important measure.

The retention of the 9% VAT rate for the tourism and hospitality industry, particularly in light of Brexit, is a crucial measure. However, hotels here in Dublin are making the case difficult in terms of tourist facilities the length and breadth of this country including restaurants in our regional towns and villages, which benefit from this VAT rate. We need to examine that into the future.

The DIRT rate will be reduced by 2% this year and there is a commitment of a further 2% in each of the next three years. This will result in a reduction from the very high penal rate of 41%. That is very important.

The Lansdowne Road mechanism is examining teachers' pay and pay restoration across the board. However, we must also continue to invest in our State Departments. The 2,400 new teaching posts, including 900 resource teachers and 115 special needs assistants, are crucial, as are the 800 new gardaí and the 500 civilians that will be employed to free up another 500 gardaí to serve on the front line.

I very much welcome the sports capital programme for 2017. The sports capital programme introduced by the previous Government had a strong impact on local communities the length and breadth of the country. It is money that is injected right into the heart of communities, with local contractors getting to do some of the works. A number of clubs in my area are benefiting from that. I refer to the investment the Minister of State, Deputy Corcoran-Kennedy, who is sitting beside me, has obtained for the Healthy Ireland initiative. Sports capital grant funding is inextricably linked to that. It is about targeting, for example, GAA clubs that take a cross-community approach in terms of male and female participation and so on. I presume the points system for sports capital funding will be the same as it was previously, which is very much weighted towards those clubs that have diversity and mixed use, and where we get the maximum use out of facilities. We should not invest in AstroTurf and floodlit fields for a specific club that has a narrow outlook. We should reward those clubs that open up their gates for multi-use purposes. That is important.

The budget for health is €14.6 billion budget, which means that 25% of the overall national spend is in this area. The provision of 1,000 new nurses is a key component of that. We need those extra nurses in Naas General Hospital in Kildare, but we also have the challenge whereby nursing positions are available but we are having difficulty filling them. The difficulties in the recruitment of nurses is an area that must be tackled.

The €20 million for the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, to tackle waiting lists and reduce prescription charges for over 70s is a key element. However, supports for school leavers with disabilities, the €5 million for the Healthy Ireland fund, the €30 million for supports for older people, home care packages, transitional and acute beds are also crucial.

Housing has been a key issue. When we talk about a doubling the investment in housing of €1.2 billion, it shows the commitment of this Government to the action plan for housing that aims to deliver 47,000 more social houses by 2021 and phase out the use of hotel rooms by 2017, which is vital for those families that are in short-term homelessness. The latter is a dreadful imposition on them.

We have the help-to-buy scheme and there is a change in interest rates for landlords. Some of the changes were headline-grabbers and got a lot of focus in the media but, although they are important in their own right, they are part of a much larger action plan for housing, which mirrors our action plan for jobs. There are a number of key, targeted measures across a range of sectors that will get to the heart of where our problems are. The problems with homelessness are multifaceted and, in that regard, the extra €105 million for HAP and the extension of the rent-a-room limit to €14,000 are really important measures.

I welcome the measures for the self-employed, of whom we have 380,000 the length and breadth of this country. We talk a lot about our corporate tax rate and the foreign multinationals which employ a lot of people, notably in Kildare, but they are not so important as the self-employed person who takes on the risk of employing staff. The earned income tax credit of €400, on top of the €550 from last year, is another step in pay equalisation for the self-employed and a recognition of the very important contribution they make to our economy and society.

There are increases in long-term illness and treatment benefits without a change in PRSI, and these are really important. One should not be at a disadvantage if one takes the risk of starting a business. We need to encourage entrepreneurial spirit so the reduction in relief from 20% to 10% is important. We need the €1 million band to be lifted to get ourselves more in line with the UK. I welcome the Minister's comments to the effect that he will keep this under review for other budgets. There is also an extension of the start your own business scheme.

Self-employed dental, optical and hearing benefits are back for employees and self-employed equally, and over 50,000 children will benefit from free school meals, over and beyond the DEIS schools. I think the DEIS school system is good but DEIS schools have everything while the non-DEIS schools miss out so this targeted measure of free school meals is very important.

I would like to touch on many other areas, such as the €107 million for the rural development programme and increased funding for the horse racing sector which recognises the real and important contribution that industry plays, with the 16,000 jobs for which it is responsible the length and breadth of the country, as well as the additional €16 million for the Department of Defence. However, my colleague, Deputy John Paul Phelan, has a lot of good points to make so I will wrap up. This was a very prudent budget which uses the benefits of our improved economy to support those workers who get up in the morning, go out and make good lives for themselves and their communities. It is also a budget that looks to support the vulnerable and those who need our support the most. In the measures to deal with Brexit, it also keeps us well placed to deal with any future shocks. I commend it to the House.

10:45 pm

Photo of John Paul PhelanJohn Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I am not sure I have such good points to make but I will make them anyway. Budget 2017 was probably the dullest budget in my 15 years as a Member of the Oireachtas, and hallelujah to that. I am the only one in the House at the moment who remembers the era of McCreevy. When he came in on budget day there was always one rabbit, if not half a dozen rabbits, to be pulled out of a hat, though some had very little to do with budgeting and more to do with politics. The future of budget day announcements should be along the lines of this one - no surprises.

Deputy Lahart raised some concerns about the first-time buyer's scheme, concerns which I have and which I am sure others have too. He spoke about how basic economics were not applied but basic economics have not applied to the housing market in Ireland for a long time, if they ever did. We were building over 50,000 units at the height of the boom and yet prices were increasing exponentially every year. We will see whether this succeeds and I hope it does, but it is an attempt to see that people who are starting out and facing increased house prices, as well as the rules of the Central Bank, which need to be applied, have help in getting their foot on the property ladder and I welcome that.

I also welcome the small changes in taxation and the reduction in the universal social charge at the lowest end. I am one of those who believes the universal social charge should be absolutely and completely removed, though it should be partially replaced and the USC itself replaced two levies which brought in most of the money the USC now brings in. In the committee of which I am a member we heard that, proportionately, Ireland is at the lower end in the OECD in terms of the amount we take in PRSI, both from employers and employees, and this is probably where the change will be made in the future. We have more moving parts in our taxation system than most countries and the removal of the universal social charge is something that should be aspired to. The reduction in DIRT tax is small and will take place over four years, at 2% per annum, but it is welcome. I would like to see reductions in capital taxes too, though there was not enough leeway in this budget for that.

Deputy Heydon mentioned earned income tax credit and I welcome that, as I do the social protection measures for self-employed people, limited as they are. The child care provisions are an initial but significant step and this is the first Government that has made a significant effort to deal with the colossal costs that many families have in this regard. With the after-school benefits being means tested this will not affect everybody we would like to help in the first years of operation but it is laying down the ground rules of how the system might operate in the future.

One regret I have is over education spending and I do not want to be political - though I am a politician, I suppose. Media speculation had it that, prior to the budget, Fianna Fáil was placing a lot of emphasis on third level funding but the increase in third level funding, while not as much as was sought, had a knock-on effect on the funding increases available for primary and secondary level. I have a couple of degrees but everybody goes to primary school and secondary school while not everybody goes, or should go or wants to go, to third level and increases in funding for education should start at primary and secondary level. The increases that are included really only keep up with demographic changes in the country and this is a regret I have from budget day.

The Committee on Budgetary Scrutiny which I am privileged to chair is the first of its type in this House. I thank the secretariat, Mr. McEnery and his staff and the members, Deputies Barrett, Brophy, O'Connell, Lisa Chambers, MacSharry, Michael McGrath, Pearse Doherty, Cullinane, Boyd Barrett, Donnelly, Burton, Eamon Ryan and Broughan. We are 15 very voluble Members of this House who endeavoured over the month of September to have some impact on budget 2017. There is an absolute necessity for the establishment of an independent budgetary office in the House by spring next year to support the committee in its work.

One of the things that has always surprised me about budgets is how we can have much discussion, here and outside the Chamber, about the €1.3 billion announcement but little or no discussion of the other €56 billion or €57 billion that is automatically part of the budget. That is a massive area on which the budget scrutiny committee will have to focus its attentions in the future, long after we have all gone. There was one clearly identifiable area in virtually every report produced on the economic crash in Ireland and that was that we did not have enough consideration of budgetary matters prior to the budget day announcement. We were extremely limited in what we could do this year as we only had our first meeting in the last week of July before the Houses rose for the summer. We managed to meet two days a week every week in September, before the Dáil came back, to produce a report.

The members put themselves strongly to the task at hand. Indeed, some of the measures and areas that were highlighted in our report were dealt with in the budget, but it is imperative, if that committee is to function properly and as we all wish it would into the future, that the independent budgetary office and, indeed, a number of other supports, are given to it.

I join the Minister of State, Deputy Heydon, in welcoming the provisions included in the budget for those on social protection incomes. One of the biggest criticisms I have of the budget is that it did not do enough. Maybe more money could have been targeted at individual areas but I believe there was a conscious effort by the Government to ensure that everybody got something out of this budget and that it was not just particular groups in society that were picked off. That was correct after seven or eight years of difficult financial times for individuals, families and communities.

Finally, I welcome the provision in the budget for additional funding for the work of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners. Previous speakers mentioned the increase in revenue from corporation tax. There is a body of work that has to be done there. Hopefully, we as a committee will be able to take part in that too but the Revenue has an important function in that regard.

10:55 pm

Photo of Pat GallagherPat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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I now move to the Fianna Fáil slot of 20 minutes. I understand Deputy O'Rourke is sharing time with Deputies Jack Chambers and Brendan Smith.

Photo of Frank O'RourkeFrank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I welcome this opportunity to speak on the budget and the measures that were passed and discussed in the House last week. I will focus on a few key areas, in particular, highlighting areas of opportunity that I believe have been missed in the different Departments.

In regard to infrastructure expenditure the budget has been disappointing. Given that the capital borrowing is at such low interest rates, nearly in the negative, we missed opportunities where we could have included more in the capital programme to improve services nationally. For example, in public transport, under the NTA there has been good work done over many years and we need to do more to improve the public transport services, both rail and bus. This was an opportunity where we should have invested further in this area to improve the public transport links, from the capital out and inter-county. With interest rates for borrowing at such a low level, we should be considering the opportunity to invest further in significant infrastructure so that the country can develop further in the future and take advantage of the financial circumstances under the capital borrowing project.

On the road network, we need to build and do further work. We have an extensive network of motorway and dual-carriage, but there are parts of the country, for example, the N3, N4 and N5, that need to be expanded and further developed to bring them up to a proper standard. There are three reasons for this. First, we need to use them as an opportunity to attract more foreign direct investment and provide more opportunities for that in different parts of the country. Second, we need to support the industry and services that are there already. Third, tourism, which is a significant industry in this country, is doing exceptionally well. Ireland is well promoted. Fáilte Ireland and all of the different local authorities are playing a positive role in that regard, but Fáilte Ireland needs a way of encouraging visitors when they come here to move around with ease.

In my constituency of Kildare North - to be parochial when I have this opportunity in the House - Celbridge is one of the largest towns in the area with a population of just under 22,000. It has a deficit in that it needs a new bridge, the absence of which is stopping the town from developing to its true potential. Clane and Maynooth need ring roads so that they can continue their development and for the towns to progress. Then we need further park and ride facilities, tied in with the public transport element, so that those towns can develop and flourish further. Those services and infrastructure improvements can be delivered by capital investment and it is something we need to look at further in this House in the time ahead.

The programme for broadband roll-out, particularly into rural areas effectively now has a time deadline of 2021 for completion. In north west Kildare in my constituency, broadband virtually does not exist. This does not help new businesses set up and those, particularly students, who want to work from home. Where one needs to access that service in the home, it does not exist. While there is a plan, we need to fast-track to improve the delivery of the broadband service into rural areas nationally.

In health, I welcome the provision of €15 million for the National Treatment Purchase Fund. Hopefully, it will deal with some of the waiting lists for surgical procedures where in some areas there is more than a two-year waiting list. When the fund worked at its optimum when Fianna Fáil was in Government, it was probably being given an investment of €50 million. Perhaps there an opportunity to look at further investment in that programme to help alleviate the waiting lists. Then we need to look at a further investment and a strategy plan so that we can put the infrastructure and supports in place to allow the front-line services deal with the issues in the health service, especially surgical operations, so that those waiting lists do not increase again.

We need to look at the medical cards for all. There is an issue here, particularly for those with disabilities, that needs to be addressed. The extra funding in the disability area is an improvement. It is moving in a positive direction but it is important that such funding is targeted in the right areas, for example, in the assessment of needs, in the programmes following out from the assessment of need and also to ensure that the correct services are in place, which does not happen at present where there is a deficit in that area. Funding is important, but we need to ensure that the funding goes into the right areas and that people are held responsible and accountable for it, including the delivery of the services, which are inadequate at present.

The €5 a week increase for the old age pension is positive and moving in the right direction but we need to ensure it does not have an impact on the means test, particularly for the medical card. I hope the Department will adjust the pension means test threshold to take that into account because otherwise it will have a negative effect.

It was disappointing to see no increase in child benefit. I raised in the House with the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Varadkar, the idea of extending the child benefit to all in full-time secondary education. He gave a positive indication that he would look at it. That is the most expensive year for families in second level education. I was disappointed not to see that included in some measure. Even if it had to be included on a phased basis by way of means, it would have assisted some struggling families right away. There was no increase in child benefit across any sector and that was disappointing.

Motor insurance, as the House will be aware, is a significant issue at present. We spoke about it at length in this House. The reduction in the USC, while positive, is of no relevance when it is being consumed by the considerable increases in motor insurance. The Minister is bringing forward measures next month. It is a serious issue that needs to be addressed.

The treatment of the self-employed is going in the right direction also, but we need to do more to allow them to access the social welfare benefits if they are out sick or if they are unemployed. That is an issue for the self-employed, who are contributing to the Exchequer and at present see that they get little in return.

The food sector is an important part of the economy. In light of the UK vote to exit the EU, I would like to see the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation put in place a fund to help Irish companies grow their exports and promote themselves better abroad and become less reliant on the UK market. We have an excellent product and it is most important that we support Irish companies to promote and market that abroad.

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak on the budget. I will hand over to Deputy Jack Chambers.

11:05 pm

Photo of Jack ChambersJack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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Like Deputy Frank O'Rourke, I wish to mention some of my key focus areas in the budget. It is important to look at the budget in a global context. On a macroeconomic basis, it got it right and made the correct adjustment of €1.3 billion in the context of where Ireland was at. That was the prudent thing to do. Fianna Fáil, as part of its confidence and supply arrangement, approves of that type of macroeconomic policy.

In the context of Brexit and what we have seen in recent months, I welcome the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan’s announcement of a debt-to-GDP ratio target lower than what the European Union wants us to have in order that we create a rainy day fund. My view is that Ireland potentially is sleepwalking into a significant crisis, not because of our own decisions but owing to international factors. This is an open economy that is vulnerable and Brexit will have significant economic, political and social consequences for the State and the economy. I was disappointed with the lack of a focus on Brexit. It was unfortunate that the Government had left the budgetary allocation for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and its specific Brexit section as it was, as there must be a greater investment focus and resources to deal with the issue.

We could have been more innovative in the context of Brexit in attracting more inward investment. While I welcome the changes to the capital gains tax regime introduced by the Minister for Finance, capital gains tax inhibits investment in Ireland by indigenous companies and also by external investors, given that one third of an asset gain is taken by the State when an asset or business is liquidated. We could have looked at the mistakes made in the noughties in the capital gains tax regime when the focus was very much on property transactions. If we had differentiated between property and real asset price changes, it could have had a positive impact on indigenous businesses and Irish people investing in the economy but also from an international perspective. That issue should have been addressed, in addition to some of the other positive measures my colleagues mentioned that could have been introduced.

Overall, while I thought the budget strategy was different, I was disappointed by the bartering in the media as to which measure would or would not be introduced and who would or would not take credit for it. The people outside this bubble do not care who takes credit for this, that or the other. We must get away from the big bang budgetary approach. Some of the points made by Deputy John Paul Phelan were welcome. I hope the budgetary committee will have a strengthened role next year and that it will start its process earlier. For example, while it is welcome in the health care sector that there will be a €14.6 billion allocation, we have no policy or focus from the Department for Health on its future plans for the health service. Fine Gael entered the general election with a plan to introduce hospital trusts, but the party has yet to legislate or do anything in that regard. In addition, it is deferring to the health care committee without addressing the core needs and crisis in the health care system. There is rhetoric around health care and recruitment, but we are still haemorrhaging significant numbers of nurses, doctors and health care workers to international locations while failing to bring back those who have left home. A proper recruitment practice has yet to be introduced by the Government or the Department. It is easy to make budgetary statements and announcements on key policy areas, but we must move away from this and stratify our budgetary approach on a Department by Department basis that will link budgetary decisions or changes with policy outcomes. It is easy to announce in a shallow headline what the budgetary change is, but if we do not seen any improvement in health care in the coming year, in spite of the biggest health budget ever, it will be clear that there is a systemic issue that is not being addressed because we have no health care policy.

Deputy John Lahart has referred to some of the issues that arise with the first-time buyer's scheme, to which there has been a very negative response in my constituency. We have seen significant house price inflation in recent weeks since the budgetary announcement. It was a mistake. It would have been more prudent to award people who had been renting for a period and for the State to possibly help them with a deposit while recognising their rent payments. That approach would have less of an impact on the market. The Government has failed to address the regulatory costs introduced by the previous Minister with responsibility for housing, Deputy Alan Kelly, whereby a cost of more than €30,000 was imposed on each house before a sod had even been turned on a site. That was unfortunate.

In my area of responsibility I genuinely welcome the additional funding allocated to the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, for drug rehabilitation and treatment services. I hope that, as part of the next national drug strategy, she will move drug policy along in a positive and realistic way in order that we can address some of the core issues that face many in society.

Before I allow my colleague Deputy Brendan Smith to speak, I wish to welcome the measures introduced for the self-employed and the marginal gains for pensioners and others who have not received an increase for many years. I refer to the vulnerable people in communities who have endured significant difficulties on a weekly basis. I asked the Taoiseach a question today, but I have not yet received a response. It was about the reduction of 17% in the allocation to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. He mentioned that on a year by year basis grants had not been allocated owing to delays, but this should not have impacted on the projected grants for other sports clubs and new sports organisations which would like to access sports capital grants. Perhaps the measure might have been broadened within the existing budgetary framework. The Minister of State, Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, launched some positive measures to tackle obesity levels and other public health care issues which I fully support, but the cut to the sports grants allocation was really disappointing in the context of dealing with the obesity crisis.

I could continue speaking, but I will allow Deputy Brendan Smith to make his contribution.

Photo of Brendan SmithBrendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to pick up on a few of the points made by my colleagues Deputies Frank O’Rourke and Jack Chambers. There is some fairness in the budget in the disbursement of funding that became available, commonly known as the fiscal space. It is welcome that there will be an increase in pension payments and other social welfare payments because since 2011 the hallmark of budgets was not fairness.

I echo Deputy Frank O’Rourke's comments in welcoming the provision of funding for the National Treatment Purchase Fund which was a major success during the years. We must use the capacity available within the hospital system, north and south of the Border, to ensure people on waiting lists will have procedures carried out as soon as possible. In delivering health and other services to people, which is the responsibility of the Minister of State, Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, we must focus on their delivery using the capacity available in the hospital system, North and South. In the past when the National Treatment Purchase Fund was being fully utilised, significant numbers of patients from the South travelled to the North to source services, which was a very welcome development. The Leas-Cheann Comhairle and I represent Southern Ulster counties and had significant numbers of constituents who were able to avail of services in Northern Ireland owing to the National Treatment Purchase Fund. I welcome the provision of €50 million in that regard and hope it will be possible to increase the funding provided.

We must ensure local authority housing is provided as it is absolutely necessary to provide housing. There are many examples of housing stock around the country that must be returned to a habitable condition. Surely it is not beyond the capacity of local authorities, with direct funding from the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government to increase substantially the housing supply available.

On home support, we all witness on a daily basis too many instances of individuals who have been approved to receive home help but who must wait for assistance to become available. The time lag involved must be reduced. There are too many instances of people who have to remaine in hospital because a home support service has not been put in place.

I refer, in particular, to services for children with special and additional needs. We must ensure additional professional services will be put in place. I sincerely hope the extra allocation will mean an improved service.

I refer to the capital programme which in recent years has lacked ambition. I welcome, however, the commitment to have a mid-term review of the programme in 2017. Those of us who represent Southern Ulster and Border counties can see the huge obstacles and challenges facing local economies because of the decision of the British people in the referendum on EU membership.

I will take the opportunity to mention a few projects in my constituency that are needed to ensure we can maintain employment and try to grow it. There is an urgent need to progress the design and planning of the proposed Virginia bypass on the N3 in County Cavan which carries traffic right throughout County Cavan, south Donegal and through Fermanagh. There is a bottleneck there. If we are serious about rural development we have to ensure that much needed capital projects are progressed as rapidly as possible. It is essential not just to create additional employment but to maintain the employment that is already there. A proposal was advanced in 2009-10 for the development of the east-west route from Sligo to Dundalk with particular stretches that need attention, namely the Cootehill, Shercock, Carrickmacross to Dundalk route. Unfortunately that project was stopped by the previous Government's inability to provide funding to the National Roads Authority to continue work that had commenced in County Louth and also work in planning and design by Monaghan and Cavan county councils. Fortunately there is a good bit of employment across those towns of Cootehill, Shercock, Carrickmacross and Dundalk. Much of the product that is exported from that part of Cavan and Monaghan goes to Greenore Port. We need a proper route to ensure those heavy vehicles can travel in reasonable comfort and at reasonable speed. I appeal to the Government to ensure, given the considerable challenges we face now arising from Brexit, those projects are advanced. If the Border counties are to be given some hope of dealing in a meaningful way with the particular challenges we face it is absolutely essential that our infrastructure is improved dramatically.

I am glad my colleagues, Deputy Frank O'Rourke and Deputy Jack Chambers, mentioned Brexit. I have posed numerous questions to the Taoiseach and various Ministers since the June referendum and I am most disappointed that much needed additional funds have not been provided to the different Government agencies and Departments that need to deal with the Brexit issue. It is most disappointing that it took the British Prime Minister almost ten weeks to reply to a letter from the Northern Ireland First Minister and deputy First Minister. I have a copy of the reply from Prime Minister May and it is most disappointing. It took ten weeks to send a holding reply that does not deal with the specific issues that were put to her and her Government by the First Minister and deputy First Minister. There are generalities included in the reply. It is not adequate. I sincerely hope the Taoiseach and his colleagues in government will be able to insist and ensure the British Government takes the concerns of the people of all of this island into consideration in their negotiations with the European Union.

There are particular challenges for us. There has been a huge downside already to the Brexit referendum result. I see it in my county and constituency. Small and medium enterprises that were heavily or totally dependent on exports to the sterling area of Northern Ireland and Britain have been impacted very negatively already with the loss of jobs. If one takes the mushroom sector in particular, there has been a traumatic effect on that particular sector because its only outlet was the British market. We need action, not just general policy initiatives. We need support for those sectors.

11:15 pm

Photo of Pat BuckleyPat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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I congratulate Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Their long running show is more like a documentary. On the one hand, Fianna Fáil is knocking Fine Gael for the budget, yet its Deputies will probably sit on their hands and support it very shortly. This is not a good budget for Ireland. It is certainly not a good budget for anybody under 26. It is certainly not a good budget for pensioners. If one is part of the squeezed middle, it certainly is not a very good budget. It was mentioned a while ago that it was not appropriate to give the under-26s the extra freaky fiver, as we will call it. If one puts oneself into the position of a 22 or 23 year old who has a part-time job, is probably living at home, has borrowed money from the credit union and is paying back a loan, a fiver makes an awful lot of a difference. It has not been put into perspective. I had a phone call the other night at 9.20 p.m. from an 83 year old gentleman who was so disgusted with the fiver that I actually thought it was my fault. He said, "I don't want it, Pat, give it to the kids." There is a sense of anger. I do not think Deputies in the Chamber realise what damage has been done to ordinary working people and to real working families. There has to be a reality check here. Again today in the Chamber I listened to the leader of Fianna Fáil criticise the Fine Gael leader on investment in health and mental health. Yet, a number of weeks ago when we proposed to do something about it, Fianna Fáil Deputies sat on their hands. There is no political will in this Chamber. I also heard the Fianna Fáil leader, Deputy Micheál Martin, state a number of days ago when we were discussing the budget that Fianna Fáil did not write the budget. I can certainly say that Fianna Fáil coloured it in because it has the hallmark of both parties. We know what will happen in a couple of days' time.

It beggars belief that there could not have been a better way on this budget. It should have been about investing in our country by investing in public services, housing, roads, broadband and schools. Establishing the knock-on effect of this is not rocket science. The Government has to invest in real jobs, give people an opportunity to earn real money and improve the services we have. They are all paying tax. It is not rocket science. The knock-on effect of that would be that the Government would address the problems in housing and our education system. It would certainly take the stress off the health service by investing in people. It goes back to one thing. Each and every one of these people would actually have proper, paid jobs so they could pay taxes. It is about making a fairer and more affordable system for our citizens. The Government had an opportunity to do it but unfortunately we stick to the status quohere which is very unfortunate.

Big bang budgets were also mentioned. Perhaps it is not a big bang budget for Fine Gael or Fianna Fáil but it was certainly a big bang budget for under-26s, pensioners and what the Government classes as the squeezed middle. That is the reality of this budget. We have to empathise with people outside this Chamber. Even as a newly elected Deputy, I understand the notion of being in a bubble, but we actually leave the bubble now and again and engage with real people. We are here as elected representatives to work on behalf of the people we represent. I have a son at home who will be a teenager very shortly. He is excited about trying to go out and get a job and save up for his first car. This budget does not give much hope to the young people of today. It has deflated the people we should probably respect the most in this country, that is our ageing population, which is on the rise. They are the people who built this country. We should be planning ahead for this but we are not. We are going back to the same old status quo, specifically targeting certain areas.

Deputy Doherty mentioned the figure of €20 million a while back.

That could have been used in a more productive way.

We can discuss figures and numbers, but we have listened to the debate over the last few days and it just seems to be repetitive. I spoke to a gentleman last Friday at my clinic in Midleton. He asked me what it is like up here. I said, "It is 100 mph, it is difficult but it can be rewarding." He asked me to do him a favour. He said, "When you go into the Chamber, will you speak plain English? Do not be intoxicated by the exuberance of somebody's vocabulary." I laughed. The reason I laughed is the people do not need fancy terms. They do not need all of this colouring in and shading of numbers. They want the brass-tacks truth, and the brass-tacks truth of this budget is that it is not good for the young people of this country and is certainly not good for this country's sick people, pensioners or the squeezed middle. When there is another election, I hope people will remember what has happened in this Chamber. We can debate this budget at length, but at times one feels one is wasting time because the outcome will not be good for the people who put their faith in us.

I could talk for longer, but it is very difficult. We in this Chamber will be judged on merit. When the next election is held I hope and pray that, please God, the young people, pensioners and the squeezed middle of this country will remember this.

Debate adjourned.

The Dáil adjourned at at 11.20 p.m. until 12 noon on Thursday, 20 October 2016.