The reality is that the Minister for Finance has a double whammy. On the one hand, he is using price increases as a way of collecting of taxes. He is using inflation as a tax collecting tool. I alluded on Second Stage to the increases that have happened this year. For example, motor tax is up 12%; hospital charges are 26%; the threshold for qualifying for the health boards' drug refund scheme is up 31%; VHI charges are up 18%; cigarettes and alcohol are up 15%; bank and card charges are up 29%; ESB charges are up 13%; college fees are up 9%; parking fees are up26%; Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann fares – announced the week after the budget by the Minister for Transport – are up 9%, while the television licence fee is up 40%. These are just some of the stealth taxes that have been increased. Therefore, the consumer is taking a double hit. On the one hand, the cost of living and inflation are going up and, on the other, while the Minister's case in relation to those over the age of 65 years may have merit, there were absolutely no concessions whatsoever to the vast bulk or huge tranche of people caught in the middle income sector from the point of view of giving them some relief by way of tax bands and credits. I am disappointed that the Minister will not even concede the fundamental principle, although he has acknowledged that there are particular difficulties this year.