Ivana Bacik (Independent)

The budget is most regrettable and regressive, as other speakers on this side have said. There is an immense amount of hardship and pain to be suffered, much of it hidden in small print and in back door measures. There will be a slow burn of anger as people realise the true impact of the budget on them, their incomes and their family and household incomes. We will see a long-term impact, unfortunately.

One element has not been highlighted although some speakers have touched upon it. It deserved to be highlighted and we should debate it because it appears to be a new and especially regressive policy of the Minister and of this Government. That policy is to do away with universal social benefits and instead to introduce means testing. The Minister has introduced means testing for those over 70 years of age in respect of health benefits and has effectively introduced means testing for other social benefits and separate elements. He abolished the child care supplements for children over five and a half years of age and child benefit payments for students over 18 and has introduced a vastly increased student registration charge.