Feargal Quinn (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. I do not envy him his job of balancing the books, as it is never easy, but it must be done. The State is still spending more than it is earning. We must find a way. Some of the figures provided by the Minister of State mean that we will need to make some difficult decisions. It was easy to be generous during the good times.

I will not attempt to cover all of the figures supplied, as there are too many. I will touch on a particular one, that of the General Medical Services, GMS, scheme, which costs €2 billion per year. From where will we get this money? We must make adjustments. More than 40% of people currently hold medical cards, compared with 27% only six years ago. This shows how we can get into habits and assume that they can continue. We must balance the books. I will not spend more time on this point.

In general terms, I agree with the principle that those who have more money should pay more, but I get exasperated when the State claims it cannot, for example, means test child benefit. I do not understand it. It is absurd that wealthy people receive such benefits, resulting in the Government needing to find savings elsewhere. Senator MacSharry discussed this issue easily, hopefully regarding himself.

While I believe that the measures in the Bill are a relatively small step in the right direction, we must ensure fairness. In this respect, I would like an answer to a question that I raised previously and that Senator MacSharry has asked today. Why is the allowance for a couple not exactly double that for a single person?

I do not understand that. It is unlikely people over 70 years of age are living in sin. Perhaps they are. This provision may encourage people to live in sin rather than get married.

Under this Bill, as passed in the Dáil, the income limit for a medical card for a person aged over 70 will decrease from €600 to €500 per week and for a couple from €1,200 to €900 per week. If the income limit for a single person is €500, why is it not €1,000 for a couple? I do not understand that and would welcome an explanation in this regard. It is an issue that has been raised by many people. Is there a policy in relation to this or from where is this coming?

In balancing the books many uncomfortable decisions have to be made. The Minister is not to be envied. We are going in the right direction. These types of decisions must be made. While I support the Bill, I would welcome an explanation in relation to the query I have just raised.