Larry Butler (Fianna Fail)

Many commentators said there were no stimulus measures included in the finance Bill. I will endeavour to highlight a number in the Bill which are to be welcomed.

Two and a half years' ago the Government undertook a process of stabilisation of the banks and took measures to deal with the property bubble and meet the shortfall in the economy. Senator Walsh was correct when he picked up on one of the most important aspects to be considered during a recession, the need to ensure the overspin was returned to normal. It was unrealistic to think one could return to the levels of 2003 and 2004, but we are succeeding slowly. However, we are nowhere near out of the woods in terms of the savings required in the public sector.

The trade unions are correct on this occasion in that they want to begin early negotiations with the Government, instead of what happened last year when it was left until the eleventh hour and they were then unable to carry their members and had to allow the Government to make the necessary changes to meet the financial position. That is one of the most important things that happened. The trade unions let their members down in that regard and we see the results today with the queues outside the passport office. Senator O'Toole is correct in his view that this makes us look like a Third World country. The trade unions can blame themselves for not getting on board. They now realise, if they do not wish to see further cuts to their members' wages next year, they will have to negotiate a proper public service delivery programme required by the public who pay for it.

There are an extra 150,000 people working in the public service. Despite this, I would like to see a complete overhaul of the health service. It has a middle management tier which should have been removed two or three years' ago but it is still in place, costing us upwards of €1.5 billion. The Government needs to take this into account when framing the budget for next year. The overview of the health service should include how we can deal efficiently with the current position in accident and emergency departments and consultant waiting lists. I refer to what happened at Tallaght hospital where middle management staff did not open letters for two or three years. These are the issues that will need to be dealt with in the next budget.

The Government acted correctly in introducing a one-year moratorium but the possibility of having a two-year moratorium on mortgage repayments should be considered. The Government is considering ideas to deal with distressed mortgages. The Joint Committee on Social and Family Affairs suggested 22 amendments in its report. Deputies Byrne and Enright are also members of the committee and had a part to play with regard to the proposals. They are 22 reasonably good proposals dealing with mortgages and general indebtedness. Senator Boyle said we went on a spending spree for a number of years for which we were paying dearly. There has, however, been a significant increase in savings, from 2% to 14%.

The budget looked at ways of cutting expenditure and reducing waste in the system and there were no increases in taxation. Previous budgets increased the levels of taxation but it was not possible to continue this policy, as it would depress the economy as a whole.

I recommend examination of professional fees. While wage costs have reduced across the sector, GPs have increased their charges by another €5, from €60 to €65. Such increases need to be curbed, as they cannot be allowed to continue. Professionals such as solicitors continue to charge the same fees. I am not casting any aspersions on the profession but its members need to live in the real world and consider a reduction in fees in line with those across the sector. I make the same suggestion to barristers. The general public needs to see that we are being fair and that everybody is taking a cut. The Taoiseach took the lead with substantial cuts in his own salary. We all suffered the same level of cuts, which is important.

The loss of Dell was a big blow to Limerick but it is encouraging to note there is a fund of €14.8 million, with a top-up fund of €9 million, available for the for upskilling of workers. This is the way to invest in people to introduce new skills and ideas which will be of benefit to all those who have lost their jobs. I have no doubt younger workers will find new jobs. In the past three months substantial job creation projects have been announced. A total of 1,600 or 1,700 jobs were created in the period, although others were lost.

The social welfare bill comes to €22 billion. I suggest that the Minister for Social Protection and the Minister for Finance examine the possibility of putting in place a grant of €10,000 for two years to take people off the dole, and not to borrow that money but to take it from the social welfare budget, so those companies that are prepared to take people off social welfare, be they SMEs or multinationals, can do so. If people are on lower wages I also suggest we do not remove their medical cards immediately and that they could retain them for up to two years. That would encourage people back to the workplace and save the Exchequer around €2.5 billion. When a person is taken off the dole, even if we are giving a grant for two years, that person will be taxed and that tax will come back to the Government in revenue. Such a saving would be terribly important.

Considering the tough budget, it is important to see there was expenditure on child care, with 250 social workers who will be working under the auspices of the Minister of State, Deputy Barry Andrews, to ensure we deliver a better service to the young. That is vital in view of the fact we had such a difficult budget.

We should remember that the EU and the IMF have seen in the last three budgets that we were serious about addressing our budget. Consequently, it now costs less for this country to borrow money. We are credible on the bond market.

I was a critic of AIB Bank, calling for it to bring its funds back from abroad, sell off its property and put its house in order here instead of having the Government spending money on it. Its overseas investments are valued at around €2.3 billion so it is time for AIB Bank to bring that money home and do what other banks are doing across Europe. It would be a start and instead of the Government putting €4 billion into that bank, it would mean €1.2 billion of support would be necessary for AIB Bank.

We want our banking system to function. Senator Joe O'Toole was right that banks lost the run of themselves, trying to become developers and entrepreneurs. That is not their job. The job of a bank is to lend money and to get it back with a margin on it. It is simple enough. When the banking report is complete, we will see clearly that the mistake was that the banks went away from the system they had. When I was building, my bank manager would look at whatever project I was working on and would ask me when it would be finished. I would ask when he needed his money back and it was my job to ensure I paid back the loan and interest within that timeframe. The banks moved away from that model. Now if a business applies to a bank manager, the application is sent to head office to someone who does not even know the applicant to make decisions about those with a 25 or 30-year track record. I hope I have contributed to this Bill and I commend it to the House.