Seanad debates

Thursday, 4 November 2021

Finance (European Stability Mechanism and Single Resolution Fund) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages

 

10:30 am

Photo of Alice-Mary HigginsAlice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Unfortunately, I am not making this in simply a precautionary manner but because there has been a lack of engagement on some important decisions, most notably the recovery and resilience strategy. Ireland is one of only seven countries in the European Union that did not have parliamentary scrutiny or debate on our plan for recovery and resilience. That is a fund of €850 million, which is substantial, and which did not have public scrutiny, Oireachtas scrutiny or engagement. That is why I am trying to insert hard instruments in this regard to ensure we have such engagement because, sadly, we have not had it. We had requests from the joint committee about scrutiny of that matter. It is a frustrating issue, given that one of the largest individual, financial and fiscal packages was being made, since we did not have the opportunity to input, guide or engage on that plan. We were an outlier within the European Union on that. Only seven countries did not have such a process.

I agree that the December date in amendment No. 4 is tight. It is because mid-December is the point for public and stakeholder engagement. For stakeholders to be able to engage on the economic governance position, it is useful for them to have it. That is why I refer to an outline. I agree that it may not be finalised. I hope that when there is engagement from the Government, it will not be fully finalised but there will be scope and flexibility to engage with what is coming through. At the moment, the deadline for other stakeholders to engage on economic governance falls in December. There is not a sense yet of an outline of what position Ireland will advocate for and what difference it will make. I do not like to cite media concerns.

There was a concern with regard to housing which I will not go into in depth since it is not in the Minister's remit. We have seen clear positions being taken in the Department of Finance with regard to other realms and other areas, relating to, for example, the State accessing finance. I am concerned that leasing, which we were told was only being done because we were required to do it by the fiscal rules, has continued to be part of this year's budget strategy. More than 2,600 houses are proposed to be provided through leasing, which is bad value for the State. There is a concern that policies and preferences are being pursued which, in some cases, overrule other economic advice such as the advice from the ESRI, yet it has not had public discussion.

Even the tensions between competing goals that we have as a State have not been properly articulated, for example, between our long-term development strategy and our position on fiscal constraints or the Stability and Growth Pact. I am not likely to put this in. It is only in the context of some frustration about engagement on this that I would table these amendments. I will withdraw amendment No. 4 but will press amendments Nos. 5 and 6. I recognise that 1 December is quite tight, but it is tight for everyone.

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