Mal O'Hara (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will make this shorter, then. This is a somewhat surreal experience for me. For over ten years, I have been party-political, and that period has seen a polity in the North in which we have faced significant challenges. Therefore, it is welcome to see a budget that is very progressive. I would push back on some of the earlier commentary to the effect that it does little to help the most vulnerable. This budget is focused on the most vulnerable, and we will see its impact on people's household incomes and on those who will disproportionately benefit, namely those in the most deprived deciles. Let us be very clear about that.

For too long in the North, the reflex has been to blame the British and the British Government, not the people who have been in government for 26 years, for the challenges we face there. These challenges are writ large and I have talked about them before this House.

I commend the budget. We have managed to shepherd a healthy economy, in very challenging circumstances, through a global pandemic and also through war in Europe, which we did not envisage in our lifetime. We have also done so while reducing emissions significantly. This provides a counter-narrative to the idea that emissions cannot be reduced without having a healthy and successful economy. The budget and how we have arrived at this point are evidence of it.

The budget is progressive in that contains some of the green elements we have pushed for. The lesson of coalition is that you do not get everything you want but you get significant wins. For us Greens, we have seen the "baby boost", investment in a VAT reduction for heat pumps, free transport for under-nines, record investment in nature and heritage, HRT for women and the warmer homes schemes and retrofit schemes. These are significant in providing for the most vulnerable.

We accept there is more we need to do in housing but we are making significant progress. The consensus on how to move forward on the land hoarding tax is a key step in this regard and could potentially free up space for tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of housing units.

I am really pleased to see the commitment to maintaining reduced transport fees and additional funding for transport infrastructure. I wish the ambition were similar in the North.

We see a record budget for arts and culture. If this is the land of saints and scholars, we need to value our arts. I am glad to see that is reflected in the budget.

There is an opportunity, maybe through the Apple money, regarding the shared island initiative. We must co-operate on the areas of shared services, energy, transport, biodiversity and climate, and of course the development of infrastructure on an all-Ireland basis, recognising that the North has seen considerable underinvestment, in part because of the conflict, and that we must play our role in supporting it. I commend the budget.