Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)

I am told by people who get their hair done on a regular basis that it can be expensive. That is why this measure was included.

Senator Jim Walsh makes a fair point about the construction industry which has gone through an enormous collapse from a point some years ago where it employed 85,000 to the current dire situation. Despite all the palaver about developers and the like, the reality is that we need a construction industry. At some point we will have to get back to building houses and investing in infrastructure. However, it is prohibited under EU law to reduce to a zero rate unless that rate was in place in 1991 when the new tax rules were introduced.

As Senator Paul Bradford observed, there was positive news in the initiative on issues such as the schools building programme, retrofitting and so on. For example, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Pat Rabbitte, has made an announcement on the allocation of €30 million, which will obtain another €30 million in private sector investment. This will provide employment for some 6,500 people this year in retrofitting. However, we need to do more in this regard. One of the best ways to reduce heating bills is to have one's home retrofitted.