Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

The Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform must have done more to check the housing market in this country in one hour than anybody else has done in the past ten years when he said stamp duty should be abolished completely and that the State could do without the €2 billion it generates. I do not think anybody on this side of the House has said that stamp duty should be abolished completely.

I support the motion tabled by Senator John Paul Phelan this evening, which is designed to look after the first-time buyer in particular and outlines two ways in which it can be done. The Government has treated young and first-time buyers with contempt in the past ten years with its record on stamp duty. Not only did it take away from them the first-time buyer's grant of £3,000, the equivalent of €4,000, it also raised VAT on construction costs by 1.5% from 12% to 13.5%, which amounts to approximately €4,000 for the average house. What has been the result of that? The result has been 35-year mortgages and, in the past two years, 120% loans.

As Senator John Paul Phelan asked, when the first-time buyer's grant was abolished, did the price of houses come down? I do not think anybody saw a reduction in house prices. The first-time buyer's grant of €4,000 was very valuable because it helped purchasers to fit out and furnish their houses and it helped them with many necessities. Now a person buying a house for the first time must have a 120% mortgage or a 35-year term. Alternatively, his or her parents must mortgage or remortgage their house to provide the extra finance to provide him or her with a home for the first time.

I am very disappointed with the amendment tabled by the Government. The Government obviously does not want to speak about stamp duty and has concentrated its efforts on taxation. In the past four years in particular, 41 stealth taxes have been imposed by this Government. VAT has risen by 8% in some cases and motor tax by 12%. Hospital charges are up by 26% and the drug refund scheme by 31%. VHI costs have risen by 18% and cigarettes and alcohol by 15%. Bank and credit card charges have risen by 108%. Bin charges have risen by 29% and ESB costs have soared by 13%. College fees have risen by 9%, parking fees by 25% and bus fares by 9%. The TV licence has risen by 40% and there has been a VHI hike of 8.5%. The drug refund scheme threshold has risen by €8 to €78 and accident and emergency charges have risen by €5, from €40 to €45. There has been a 15% increase in the cost of private beds in public hospitals and the Government has imposed a €5 increase on the cost of overnight hospital stays, bringing them up to €45 per night with a cap of ten nights per year. Third level students' registration fees have risen by €80 to €750, the fee for junior certificate examinations has increased by €10 to €82 and the leaving certificate by the same amount to €86.