Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I am glad to have the opportunity to speak on the budget. I have been around both Houses long enough to know how these things work — the Government says one thing, the Opposition says something else, then the roles change and the merry-go-round starts again. However it is important that we have an opportunity to comment on what the Minister presented to the other House. While it is impossible to sum it up in the limited time available, I want to comment on a few of the issues highlighted in the Minister's Budget Statement today.

The Minister's proposal on biofuel and alternative energy is important. All parties have sought this over the past 12 to 18 months as a result of the massive fuel price increase across the globe. Both environmental issues and fuel costs must be addressed and the Minister's proposals can be helpful in that regard. It is important that we drive those proposals forward as quickly as possible. Unfortunately our public administration has a history of bringing ideas forward but failing to make them happen as quickly as they should, and this is the fault not of the civil servants but of the politicians. It is vital that we put effort into ensuring the biofuel proposals are implemented. In view of the ongoing crisis debate on the future of Irish Sugar, and the strong possibility that sugar beet may not be grown in the future for the production of sugar, we have the possibility here of solving both problems by ensuring crops will be grown for biofuel purposes. I hope we look seriously at that.

I want to comment on the Minister's statement on the stallion tax. As I have the Seanad nomination of the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association and am involved in a small way in the breeding of thoroughbreds, my views are biased. I would have strongly defended the stallion tax exemption. I note that it is to end in 2008 due to pressure from Brussels but I hope we will try to ensure a system of support is put in place to keep a strong Irish industry strong. We should not apologise in this House or elsewhere for the fact that over the past 30 or 40 years we have developed in the Republic of Ireland the premier horse breeding industry in the world. Rather than hiding that away as something of which we should be ashamed, we should be proud of it and all who have contributed to it. The stallion tax exemption was a major help in that regard. If, as the Minister advised today, it is to end in 2008 we should ensure that measures are put in place to keep that fine industry at its maximum strength.

The Minister of State, Deputy Parlon, was the person most associated with the decentralisation announcement two years ago. I noticed a few lines on decentralisation at the back of the booklet. We have debated it here with Deputy Parlon previously and he knows that politicians across all parties support the concept of decentralisation but are bitterly disappointed with the lack of progress. This is the second anniversary of the December 2003 announcement made in advance of local elections. Maybe it was ambitious at the time but it is important for the future of rural Ireland and from a social and economic perspective that we implement a programme of decentralisation. We now hear about plans that will take five to nine years. It is disappointing that we have made so little progress. I know the Minister of State is in the midst of controversy today about a local radio poll. That does not concern me. I want to see action on the implementation of decentralisation. If it needs to be reviewed and restructured, so be it; we could all live with the political consequences for a few months. For the good of rural Ireland and for the capital city, let us see the programme realised. Deputy Parlon must take a stronger approach to it over the next 12 months. We do not want to look back in five or six years time on a lost opportunity.

The Minister of State is aware of the issues facing agriculture and the reliefs announced in the budget. One of the issues on which we all receive representations, and which does not appear in the budget, is the case for tax relief for farmers trying to consolidate their lands. I ask that something be done in the Finance Bill. That case is reasonable and has been made very strongly to us. It would lead to better farming, in some cases better environmental practice and road safety would be improved as farmers would not have to travel miles to reach separate parcels of land. The Minister of State should consider some tax relief for this.

A budget is no longer the big political event it was. The Estimates have been published and the Finance Bill will follow so we will debate this again. I hope the positive aspects of the budget will be acted on quickly. The major fault of the Government over the past seven or eight years has been its failure to deliver on commitments and overspending in many areas. Without being too party political, that needs to be tackled. I refer to the Minister's concluding remarks about the need to be more transparent in the budgetary process and to have more dialogue and debate within the political system. That would be good for politics because it would allow the public not just to see what is on offer at election time but to engage in the broader debate and see the political and financial choices available.