Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have great admiration for Senator White and she is generally a very fair commentator and has very fairly commended some aspects of the budget. I admire that and that is important. None of us said this was a soft budget. There are measures in it that we all regret deeply, particularly, as Senator White said, the cuts in the household benefits package. Personally, I find the cut in the top rate of maternity benefit most regrettable. In the circumstances in which we find ourselves, it was a very difficult decision for the Government to make and I do not see any other political parties offering any alternative way to achieve the focus on jobs. I do not think that any of us should apologise for this budget being focused on job creation.

I take issue with any criticism of the retention of the 9% VAT rate. This is a job creation measure. It has been proved that the reduction of the VAT rate in the hospitality and tourism sector creates jobs. We were lobbied very hard and very justifiably for that retention. I do not think anyone should criticise the retention of that rate or say that in some way it is not a job creation measure.