Deirdre Clune (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As other speakers have said, this is not an easy measure but it is one that must be put in place if we are to ensure we get our finances back on track. I hope it will not be necessary. I hope we will have agreement but we do not know how individuals will vote. We will leave that to themselves and their various unions but look forward to a positive result in that area. The overarching ambition of all these adjustments is to get our finances back on track. We need to be in a position whereby we are within 3% of our GDP by 2015. Some 85% has been done so far but the most difficult part is the balance. There is no doubt the last mile is always the hardest. The intention is to take €3.5 billion out of the economy in 2013, €3.1 billion in 2014 and €2 billion in 2015.

Some 35% of what the Government takes in is spent on pay and pensions in the public service. If we are to implement the necessary restructuring public sector pay and pensions must be part of that and there is no avoiding it. We are borrowing €12 billion each year to fund our public services and that is unsustainable. If we are to get the economy back on track and create a better future for those who are sitting the leaving certificate examination next week and those who are graduating from our universities this week, then it needs to be done. History will not be kind to us unless we do this. It is easy to rant and rave about it but the fact of the matter is that we have to get our house in order.

Fortunately, the news today is that the economy is good and growing. For the second successive year in a row we have had growth. Our GDP grew last year by 0.9%. The figures for unemployment today are positive. For the first time since 2010 unemployment is less than 14%, a small but significant change. For those who are unemployed the figure has reduced further. That is positive. The more people who are working and paying taxes the less dependence there is on the State for an income. The quicker we can bridge that yawning gap the better.

Senator Aideen Hayden mentioned Croke Park I. It has been positive and has worked well in Cork in respect of the reorganisation of local hospital services. I think I said previously that there is a need to move the services around whereby orthopaedic services are amalgamated in one hospital and cancer services in another. All of that was done because of Croke Park I. I was told by those who are involved in the process that it helped to get people around the table who were committed to delivering essential change in terms of the service delivery. There have been other positive developments under Croke Park I. However, the financial situation dictates that more must be done. Following rejection of the original LRC proposals, Mr. Kieran Mulvey was charged with contacting all relevant parties to engage in negotiations. Much debate took place here on Croke Park I. Some unions chose not to engage in that process while others did engage. It has been shown again with the Haddington Road agreement that they were able to state the effects the proposed changes would have on family and mortgage commitments and they were taken on board. There are new proposals now which will represent changes but will also ensure the Government gets the €300 million it wants in 2013.

I wish to make one further point. While we have heard much about imposing extra taxes on the rich we should be mindful of the recent Forfás report which warned against increasing the tax rate. Ireland already has a high tax rate. If we are to attract foreign investment and mobile workers to this country who are essential for our open economy, that tax wedge needs to be watched carefully vis-à-vis our competitors, particularly in the UK. The only future for this economy is a jobs recovery. We need people back at work. The tax wedge needs to be monitored and kept under constant review.