Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

We all know about the squeezed middle and that term is overused. We all accept that there are issues that concern the large proportion of income tax.

As the Minister and I know, and I do not wish to give her or the Members of this House a history lesson, that the cost of renting a home is too high and it is nigh impossible for most people to purchase a home. Pension and social welfare payments are not sufficient to meet the costs of living. Too many people simply cannot survive on the minimum wage and it has failed to keep pace with the cost of living. The price of petrol and diesel is particularly having an impact on agriculture and enterprise, and we need to do something about that. The Minister hails from a Border county so she and her constituents have particular experiences in that regard. The price of home heating oil now forces people on some occasions to decide whether to eat or heat, and that certainly happens in the winter. Such a situation is unacceptable. The cost of energy prices has gone through the roof. The cost of home rental has forced people back to couch-surfing, particularly students. People can no longer afford to live in the city of Dublin. Today, I spoke to people who work in Leinster House who simply cannot afford to live within a radius of 20 to 30 miles and that is the reality. Childcare fees have gone through the roof and cost as much as another mortgage. None of those facts are new to anybody in here and it is certainly not new to anybody in Leinster House.

One could be forgiven for thinking that the opposite side of the House, that is, the Members supporting the coalition Government who tabled this motion - and I welcome this opportunity to debate the motion - were not in government. They are in government and the Minister's party has been in government for a very substantial time. During the Order of Business when I and other Members deal with healthcare and the childcare crises-----