Marie Louise O'Donnell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I want to make two points. I have been making the first one here most afternoons. It is about the fact that we now have a new poor in Ireland. If one earns anything between €30,000 and €60,000 in Ireland and if one happens to be in the area of trades, teaching, health, retail or services, one cannot afford to live in one's own country if one is young. One cannot afford to buy a house or even to save for a home. One cannot afford even to have the expectation that one might one day own an apartment, because one will not be able to save. One is so busy renting that one will not be able to save the €20,000, €30,000, €40,000 or €50,000 the appalling pillar banks are demanding of people.

I keep asking the Leader to tell me what is happening about An Post and the New Zealand style community banking model which An Post is trying to implement. The Minister has not yet come back to me to tell me what is happening about the report. This is another report we cannot see. In Germany one can get a mortgage for ten years at 1.1% in one of its community banks. We are not allowed do that here. Some 95% of our banks are commercial. Only 12% of banks in Germany are commercial. We are not allowed. We seem to be waiting for the next report or the report after or the next committee meeting. This matter recently came before the Joint Committee on Climate Action, Communications and Environment. Will the Leader bring the Minister to the House? This is very political. If one wants young people to stay in our country - and we are roaring about them staying in the country - or to bring them back to the country but they cannot afford to live here or to rent here and they cannot have an expectation of getting a house or apartment in their own country, it is not going to happen. They do not even get tax relief on the rents they pay out.

I am a great believer that something should come from a freshwater place. We are supposed to be freshwater people in here with clean ideas which come in under the door like a fresh breeze. This Bill has not come from a freshwater place. It has come from a conditional place - if someone gives me something, I will give something back. Sinn Féin came in on the back of it. Its representatives are sitting there very quietly today. I know they will vote with the Government. They are sitting there very quietly because they also got the sentencing-----