Pat Casey (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I warmly welcome the Minister. Yesterday, we saw the introduction of the largest budget in the history of the State. It is designed to take us through the greatest challenges faced by the people of Ireland since the formation of the State. Each of these challenges is massive but together they present a clear and present danger to the health and well-being of every man, woman and child in Ireland. Covid-19, Brexit, climate change and our housing crisis are continuing to wreak untold damage on people.

This budget, the first since Fianna Fáil entered the partnership Government, is the most significant investment by the State in the history of Irish budgetary policy. The saying "Put your money where your mouth is" is rather coarse for this Chamber but it has meaning today. Just less than €18 billion is being put into action for one purpose, namely, to protect all our citizens against these massive threats to our nation. Yesterday's budget spending measures, as outlined by the Ministers, Deputies Michael McGrath and Donohoe, are designed to give hope the tools necessary to succeed. I am proud that Fianna Fáil in government stood true to its word and delivered a budget that can facilitate the commencement of the vital work of rebuilding our society and economy.

The immediate emergency is Covid-19 and the additional €4 billion for health will allow our front-line health workers to get the resources they need, not only to treat the pandemic but also to restart all our other vital health services, such as those relating to cancer care and mental health. Fianna Fáil pledged to bring in a step change in resources for mental health and disabilities if elected to office. A sum of €36 million is a good start for mental health provision for the coming year and €100 million for the disability sector provides hope that the State wishes to cherish all its children equally.

I have a strong interest in housing policy having served as Vice Chairman of the relevant committee of the previous Dáil. The budget is very strong on housing. We promised to hit the ground running and I am happy that this has taken place with across-the-board increases in respect of all areas of housing. We all know the massive crisis that exists in the context of housing and, ultimately, it is all about building houses. It is great that yesterday's budget is targeted at delivering a further 12,750 social houses. Some 9,500 of these will be built by local authorities and approved housing bodies. If one adds to this the 27,500 such houses that have been delivered in the past four years, it is obvious that we are beginning to see a consistent delivery of social housing through the relevant processes.

What has been forgotten in the past decade is the issue of affordability. Also forgotten are the people who do not qualify for social housing but who also do not have the income to allow them to buy houses. I am delighted that €110 million has been allocated in respect of affordable housing. I welcome the proposed shared equity scheme which, I believe, the Minister will be announcing today. This is a start and it goes back to the word "hope" again. It gives a generation a hope that they can own their own homes in the future.

I welcome the allocation in respect of deep retrofitting to provide energy efficient social housing. Most people here have served as councillors. Many local authority houses only need new doors and windows but we do not seem to have a scheme to provide them. I would like that matter to be that addressed.An organisation that never gets credit or the focus it needs is Irish Water. We cannot be resilient unless we invest in Irish Water. It is not as sexy as roads infrastructure or other issues, but we cannot do without it. I welcome the commitment to provide an additional €44 million by the end of this year and the organisation's overall budget of €1.3 billion. However, we must ring-fence a percentage of that for small towns and villages in rural Ireland so that they can be sustained, grow and keep their services.

On job creation and sustaining jobs, I heard Opposition Members say there was no certainty. If I give the Government credit for anything, as a business person who has had his business closed, opened and closed again, it is that it has done all that it can in a very uncertain time to give certainty to businesses and employers to try to sustain their future. Yesterday's announcement of the Covid restrictions support scheme, CRSS, is a new and welcome approach. The Minister might consider changing the 80% threshold because we have support up to 70% and then we have support up to 20%. A little tweaking of the figures could help the 50% in the middle to sustain themselves. It is wrong to say that we have not given certainty. I cannot emphasise that enough.

I welcome the VAT reduction for the hospitality sector, as I am in the sector. I have admitted every time I spoke in the Chamber recently that it is all about our margins at the moment. It is all about cash flow. Anything that can help our cash flow and allow us to survive this period while we are trying to negotiate our way out is a help. A VAT reduction will help that. It adds 4.5% to our bottom line. That is its aim. There will be occasions where we will be allowed to use the 4.5% to provide a better offer and make it more attractive for people in the domestic economy to stay in hotels. Initially, however, it is all about the survival of the industry and having the cash flow to see ourselves through this period.

I also welcome the commercial rates waiver scheme and the employment wage subsidy scheme. Reference was made to uncertainty, but the Minister has provided certainty on all of these issues. The employment wage subsidy scheme has been guaranteed until the end of March 2021 and the same applies to the VAT rates. I have run out of time. My final message is that both Ministers gave hope yesterday that we will survive this, that people will keep their jobs, homes will be built and businesses will be kept afloat. I thank them both for that. I am sorry for exceeding my time.