Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Craughwell for sharing time. I thank the Minister, not necessarily for yesterday's budget, but for the budgets of the past four years. Were it not for the way in which the economy and the country's finances were managed over that period, we would not really have been in a position to have the budget that was unveiled yesterday to respond to the Covid crisis. It was a necessary budget and an appropriate response. I have often discussed tourism-related issues with the Minister over the years and am very pleased he has reintroduced the 9% VAT rate because when the hospitality industry gets back on its feet, it will be a useful vehicle for sustaining employment and hopefully growing the business again. I also thank the Minister for providing additional support to Shannon Airport through the €5 million that has been announced. There is a long way to go in rebuilding the aviation industry which is critical to the west of Ireland and to the mid-west in particular but this is a welcome start. The Minister will closely observe how aviation is developing in other parts of the world and hopefully the Government will adopt best practice.

I welcome the funding and suite of measures provided for healthcare, which is the area for which I have responsibility in my party in this House. An extra €4 billion in health is completely unprecedented. I sincerely hope we see significant results from that and value for money as well. Particularly in the area of disability, which is obviously close to my own heart, I thank the Minister for what are transformative financial commitments that have not been widely reported. I thank the Minister again for what he has done for our country. This budget will make a difference with helping to retain employment going forward.