Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I join the Cathaoirleach in welcoming the Lord Mayor to the House. The post dates back to 1229, which is 15 years short of 800 years. I welcome the Lord Mayor's interest in programmes such as the vibrant villages series, to which Senator Bacik referred, and his support for a plebiscite for a directly-elected Lord Mayor. I thank him for being a generous host to Senator Whelan and other Members of the House. It is appropriate we should return his hospitality today.

Some Ministers may be interested in meeting the Lord Mayor. One of his predecessors, Mark Rainsford, was the founder of St. James's Gate Brewery. The Minister of State, Deputy White, is tackling the problem in that area and he may want to know if there are any files covering that area in the Mansion House. The Minister, Deputy Shatter, will undoubtedly want to talk to the Lord Mayor about Bartholomew Ball, who was Lord Mayor from 1553 to 1554. We can read from the history of the office that his widow was martyred by their eldest son, Walter. There should be some exciting files covering that in the Mansion House and the Minister, Deputy Shatter, might like to take a look at them.

I welcome what Senator Mullins said about the economic report launched last evening. We are creating 50,000 jobs currently and 61,000 were created last year, which was a bonus. There are some warning signs in the report. On the view that inflation would erode the debt and that a little more inflation would be good, I point out that inflation would also erode jobs. Therefore, it is a route which should only be embarked upon with caution. Table 7 in the report shows that tax revenue between now and 2018 will go up by €10.3 billion and the expenditure reductions will be €3.3 billion. There is a very heavy tax burden coming down the tracks which we hope will be covered by economic growth.

The section on the reform agenda was not published last night. It comes from the Taoiseach's Department and it might be a topic for debate in the House. There is also the suggestion, with which I believe most people would agree, that income tax is too high and that it can be solved by increasing the universal social charge, but the universal social charge is a form of income tax. That would be a bit of a three-card trick and such an approach would need to be very carefully analysed before we go down that road. There is a problem with people on an income of €32,000 a year going to the 42% tax band, as the Minister said, but it should be tackled without any secret routes about reducing income tax and increasing the universal social charge.