Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Senator McDowell has left but he reminded me that the capital development plans in respect of the national cultural institutions also seem to be moving at a snail's pace. There must be some delays in securing sanctions from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. The National Concert Hall, the Abbey Theatre and the National Library of Ireland are all waiting for movement. The Crawford Art Gallery is one of the sites that is under way but everywhere else seems to be waiting for approval to get to the next stage while the costs go up. I will probably put some parliamentary questions in to the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, on that.

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. While there are many aspects to the Bill that Sinn Féin welcomes, we are concerned that it is once again insufficient and that what speak loudest in this Bill are its omissions and its failure to provide meaningful support for workers and families that continue to face extortionate electricity bills. What also speaks loudly in the Bill is the decision, despite the repeated calls that have been made in the past six months, as Senator Casey mentioned, to refuse to provide an energy supports scheme for those businesses that rely on oil and liquefied petroleum gas.

Perhaps most frustrating is the Government's refusal, even as mortgage costs rise sharply, to introduce targeted and temporary mortgage interest relief. Last week the European Central Bank lending rate increased for the sixth time since July and that rate hike will impact more than 250,000 Irish homeowners immediately. These are homeowners who have already seen their mortgage repayments steadily increase since last summer. Irish mortgage holders were already paying the highest interest rates in Europe, 50% higher than the European average. In December, the average interest rate in Ireland was 2.88%, compared with 1.89% in Europe. It will also hit the pockets of tens of thousands of borrowers who have had their mortgages sold off to vulture funds. These mortgage holders are effectively trapped with nowhere to turn. They have no option to fix their rates or switch and despite repeated assurances from Government Ministers and the Taoiseach that they would be no worse off if their mortgages were sold to vulture funds, they are undoubtedly worse off as so many are set to pay thousands of euro more in interest costs alone this year.

The solutions are there and Sinn Féin has proposed the introduction of mortgage interest relief to absorb 30% of the increased interest cost for struggling borrowers, which would be temporary and would run until the end of the year. This would also be targeted, absorbing a portion of the increased costs since interest rates began to climb. The Government has rejected this proposal out of hand but it is refusing to provide any relief whatsoever for those struggling to afford the mortgage on their family home.

The exclusions from this finance Bill mean it raises as many questions as answers. Sinn Féin will continue to work constructively with the Government on this Bill in the next Stage in this House and we will bring forward solutions. I look forward to scrutinising the Bill in further detail on Committee Stage, where we will be submitting amendments.