Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State, Deputy Sean Fleming, is very welcome. It is good to see him in the Chamber. I should say bienvenido al Ministro de Estadobecause it is the national day of Spain and I did not get the opportunity to say it earlier.

In speaking about this budget, I will use factual data because much of what the previous speaker said was untrue. On disposable income, for instance, this budget increases it by 0.85% with the lowest 20% of earners gaining the most. It is factually untrue to say that people have been left behind when their disposable income has increased, with the poorest in society benefiting the most. On carbon tax, we made it very clear in the programme for Government that funding was ring-fenced and this was done three ways. First, for the poorest in society, we increased the fuel allowance last year in budget 2021 and we continued that this year. We also ring-fenced funding in the carbon budget for those in social housing to ensure retrofitting could be carried out. Third, we supported small farmers which is an obligation in the programme for Government and continued into this budget.

On childcare, the previous speaker would do well to remember the fact that there is a crisis for childcare workers which this budget deals with. It is not enough to simply reduce all fees because who would pick up the tab for that? It would be the people working in the industry. We have to ensure that people's incomes are increased and that children have continuity of care because, at present, workers are leaving the childcare industry. There has been a massive increase in the childcare budget this year and, not only that, but there will be a significant budget next year in childcare to deal with this issue, and this is welcome.

The zoned land levy was raised. I understand how people on the outside might look at the old 7% versus the new 3% rate. Let us be clear on this, last year the vacant sites levy generated €21,000 from across the whole island. If one considers the zoned land levy, a parcel of land worth €1 million would generate a levy of €30,000 per annum. That amount is more than the entire island generated under the vacant sites levy. Let us be honest and not pull the wool over people's eyes. We know there are many people who have not paid the vacant sites levy which is the primary problem. In the context of the zoned land levy, 50% of residential zoned land will be applicable which will generate a lot more money with which more can be done. Anyone who cares about housing or generating funding should not focus on the 7% versus the 3% rate, but should instead look at it in real practical terms, which is what I do and what the Government must do. It must be practical in finding money to bring about the changes it wants, and that is exactly what we are doing.

I will consider the detail of the budget and what the increases are. In every Department there is an increase in core funding. I have no problem with the Opposition seeking transparency, however, that transparency must be seen in reverse as well. There is a 11.2% increase for the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. We have a 9.7% increase for the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and a 7.8% increase for the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.The area for which I am my party's spokesperson, education, has received a 5.6% increase and at third level we have a 5.3% increase. I could go on and on.

There is an 8.5% increase for housing. The Housing for All strategy was announced a couple of weeks ago. We have already discussed all its details. We also know it is €4 billion per annum, and that is what is in the budget. Thus it is nonsense to say there is not enough in housing. There is never going to be enough but this is the most funding we have seen since 2008. That is actually what is in this budget. Let us be honest with people. Nobody deserves to have to worry unnecessarily that the Government is not doing its job regarding these Departments because we take it incredibly seriously. That is why we stepped up to the mark. It is very easy to point the finger but I would rather people pointed the finger with actual facts.

On climate action, I believe the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, mentioned earlier that the planet is on fire. This is our number one priority. This is why the Green Party went into government and this budget continues the work we did in the last budget. Not only that, we now have the climate Act in place, so as far as I am concerned, this is act 2. The climate Act is passed and act 2 is putting in place the measures we need in order to make everybody's lives better but also to make the future secure for our children and their children's children. We have continued our €360 million on active transport and we also have over €1 billion for public transport. We have, as I said, 11.2% on other measures in the area of environment, climate and communications. Part of that is to roll out broadband and since we came into government we have decreased the length of time it is going to take for people across the country to get broadband. We are now putting in place more funding for retrofitting. The list could go on and on but my time is nearly up.

I wish to address in detail some of the measures in education. We know difficulties have been faced with upskilling, probably across the globe. We have passed the climate Act but how do we ensure that we have the workers in place for the new future and the green economy? This means training people. There is much that needs to happen in primary and secondary school in order to make it attractive for people to go into apprenticeships and other kinds of craft skills but this budget has record funding. In fact there are 35,000 green skills places in this budget, along with numerous other initiatives related to apprenticeships and other green funding. That is essential. We need the workers but we also must create the opportunities for people right across the island. Sometimes people hear of green opportunities and think it is just a cycle lane in a city. It is not. It is retrofitting, it is jobs, it is energy. It is everywhere. It is every single part of this country and that is what this budget is doing.

On education, because of the amount that actually went into the budget last year, I was a little worried we would not see increases this year but again I was stunned to see over 1,000 new SNA posts, 350 extra teaching posts, a further reduction from last year on class sizes of one pupil per class and record funding for DEIS schools to bring more and more children into them. This is a budget for the most vulnerable in society. People can pick one or two holes. Obviously, I am always going to say we could have done this and ask why we could not do that, but I believe that overall this budget is a really good budget for every family, especially those most vulnerable.

My last point is the amount of measures that are in the budget regarding women's health. I could go on and on about those. In this Chamber, the Greens brought a motion on free contraception. It is now being funded in this budget and I thank the Minister for that.