Eugene Regan (Fine Gael)

Slowly but surely the penny has dropped. It may take time but the Government responds to pressure.

We will soon have a mini-budget, on which the Minister for Finance has proposed that the Opposition parties make submissions. The Minister believes this is a clever move. He is, in a sense, playing a trick on the Opposition and he expects it to decline his invitation, but it has not done so. Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Sinn Féin have, however, given commitments to make submissions. The Government must provide information to the Opposition. It is not a simple question of walking across to the Department of Finance and obtaining some information on the latest Exchequer figures. We must know what are the policy options, what advice is being given to the Government from various outside advisers and what measures can be adopted. The Opposition needs this information if it is to play a meaningful part on deliberations on the forthcoming budget.

On the question of taxation, Colm Keena's article in The Irish Times today highlights that 3% of earners pay 33% of income and 6% of people who earn more than €100,000 per annum pay 43% of income tax. We can have a witch-hunt against high income earners but it may kill enterprise and the incentive to work and turn the recession into a very deep and long depression. It is necessary to take a considered view of taxation measures.

The good news always seems to come from Europe. Today, the European Central Bank will announce a reduction in interest rates. This follows news that the European Union is committed to help a state which may be in difficulty with its debt. I hope Senators who opposed the Lisbon treaty will review their position and, in the interests of the Irish economy, commit to supporting the treaty in the next referendum.