Nicky McFadden (Fine Gael)

-----hanging on to his every word. Fianna Fáil and the Green Party now seem to have disregarded completely CORI's campaigning. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul and One Parent are all singing from the same hymn sheet. It is the most socially damaging budget our country has ever seen. The budget has failed our people. It is discriminatory and wholly unfair. The Government is asking the lowest paid and most dependant on the State to contribute in a manner that is totally disproportionate.

Last week's Bill was rushed through the Dáil and it is being rushed through here again this week. This is a disgrace, because the Government and the Minister are afraid of retaliation from the people. They are afraid of what ordinary people are saying on the street and in our constituencies. They know that their days are numbered, but they are afraid to meet the electorate.

The people most affected by this dishonest budget are carers, those on social welfare and people who are blind. The most callous and inhumane thing is to take €8.20 from people who are blind. Others facing cuts are lone parents, widows and widowers, while €16 is being taken in child benefit from those who do not use the money for skiing trips, fashion or anything else, but for necessities like food and heat.

Reading through the small print, we can see that rent supplement is being affected, as are optical and dental benefits. The alteration of the PRSI dental insurance scheme will affect 2 million people. The Minister stated this is because the cumulative surplus is now gone. Of course it has gone, because it has been wasted on foreign travel by Ministers, on paying off the likes of Mr. Rody Molloy, and on getting a car for the new CEO of FÁS. It is a slap in the face for those who are being put to the pin of their collar as to they try to put food on the table.

Studies have shown that in excess of 30,000 people are living with significant sight loss due to uncorrected refractive error. These people will be a danger to themselves and others as a result of the decision to no longer provide free glasses. Sight is a necessity and this benefit asset should not be touched.

Collectively, the plain people of Ireland stand to lose most from the budget. Those who are paid salaries of €30,000 per annum and those having their benefits cut did not squander the boom. They have been betrayed and have lost trust and confidence in the Government.

The Minister for Finance argued that the budget would be fair and everyone would contribute in accordance with their means. Have senior executives in the Health Service Executive or the chief executive officers in State and semi-State bodies made a proportionate contribution? They have not done so because the Government is afraid to touch them. It is also afraid to touch old age pensioners because the grey army revolted outside Leinster House last year.

The Minister's statement that she avoided cuts to payments for those aged over 66 years is disingenuous and a lie. This group has lost the Christmas bonus and the carbon tax will result in a €2.40 increase in the price of a bag of coal and a €50 increase in the cost of a bale of briquettes.

The Bill proposes a 4.1% cut in social welfare payments to people under 66 years, a measure which is expected to deliver a saving of €760 million. Jobseeker's allowance will be reduced by €8.30 to €196 and similar reductions will be applied to illness and injury benefits, farm assist, pre-retirement payments and the supplementary welfare allowance. A reduction in income of €13.90 per week for one couple is substantial.

The Irish Times reported on Saturday that the Minister is introducing the measures with a heavy heart. On the other hand, she stated she was proud of the Government's track record. It is extraordinary that the Minister has chosen to speak out of both sides of her mouth.

The Minister stated that the cost of living has declined. It costs an extraordinary amount to put food on the table. Why are so many people travelling across the Border to shop if the cost of living has fallen? The high cost of living here has cost 11,000 retail jobs. While certain costs may have declined, high costs mean people continue to shop and buy groceries in the North. It would have been better for the Government to reduce VAT rates rather than social welfare payments.

The Minister referred to social welfare fraud. I stand over the figure that this shameful practice costs the Exchequer €2 billion per annum. The Government's target for savings through anti-fraud measures in 2010 was €533 million. Last year, the target was €616 million. Combined, these targets suggest fraud costs as least €1 billion. I believe it cost a further billion last year. I fail to understand the reason the Government did not introduce identity cards or a requirement to produce photographic identification to enable us to stamp out welfare fraud once and for all.

There is no doubt that there are winners and losers from the budget. Some people have not been affected by its measures. As I pointed out, the Government promised to spread the pain and argued that the measures would impact least on those who could least afford it. The budget is an affront to every family in the country, especially those with children where one or both parents work in the public sector.

It is indisputable that cuts in child benefit will have a detrimental impact on many families who routinely rely on the monthly payment. Child benefit will be reduced by €16 per month to save the Exchequer €221 million per annum. How will families be able to afford child care? They cannot do so without child benefit. In families where both parents are working, one parent will have to give up work. Parents with two children who work every hour possible to provide a decent life for them will bear the brunt of the budget. Child benefit is a crucial part of family income and cutting it is a direct attack on the rights of families.

Single parents, who will be deeply affected by the cut in child benefit, will no longer be able to work if they cannot recover their child care costs. The Minister has repeatedly referred to the importance of incentivising people to return to the workplace. The budget measures have directly hit people in the poverty trap and many are anxious about how they will survive. While I welcome the decision to increase the payment for qualified children, which provides some assistance to those in the poverty trap, it does not affect the new poor, that is, those on middle incomes who will be hit hardest by the budget measures.

While I also welcome the decision not to interfere with the half rate payment for carers, the dramatic cut in the carer's allowance is an affront to our values. Time and again, we express our appreciation of the work done by approximately 161,000 family carers who provide more than 3.7 million hours of unpaid care each week and contribute more than €2.5 billion to the economy. The Government has decided, however, to cut their payments by €8.80 per week or €340 per annum, a substantial amount of money for those trying to survive. Carers, a selfless group of people who have essentially sacrificed their livelihoods and careers to stay at home to look after sick relatives, have also lost the Christmas bonus. Rather than engaging in self-congratulation and expressing pride in increases in the carer's allowance in previous budgets, the Minister should hang her head in shame for introducing outrageous cuts in the payment.

Why are widows and widowers treated differently from old age pensioners?