Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I fully endorse and support amendment No. 3 in the name of Senator Casey. I ask the Minister to take on board the issues the Senators have raised. I had the opportunity to raise this matter with the Minister of State myself. This is the wrong way to go. At this late stage, I call on the Government to reconsider this measure. Covid-19 has had a hugely negative impact on our retail industry. Many of our shops are struggling. They have only had the opportunity to reopen for Christmas this week. The last several weeks would have traditionally been one of their busiest periods. Retailers need as much support as they can get.

Travel is currently restricted but with the advent of vaccines, 2021 will hopefully be a much better year. We may see normal numbers of visitors to the country in 2022 and thereafter. We must do everything we can to support these businesses and make sure Ireland is as attractive a place for people to spend their time and money as possible. The money they spend is hugely important to supporting employment, jobs and businesses. The constituency of Kildare South has many tourist attractions. I refer particularly to the Irish National Stud, Newbridge Silverware and Kildare Village, which supports many people through employment.

This threshold will have a very negative impact on people's spending patterns. A cumulative threshold of €75 over several transactions would be an understandable measure but that is not what is proposed. A single purchase of €75 would be quite significant at the attractions I have mentioned. That is particularly true in some of our more tourist-friendly counties. I ask the Minister of State to consider accepting this amendment. Failure to do so would be regressive.