Aubrey McCarthy (Independent)

Thousands of small businesses across Ireland are crying out for breathing space. In the last few days, we have seen statements from the Small Firms Association, SFA, and the Restaurants Association of Ireland, both of which represent the backbone of our local economy. Between them, they represent everyone from tech entrepreneurs and professional services to family-owned cafés and restaurants, such as my own, that are struggling to keep their doors open. The numbers are stark. According to the Small Firms Association, over half of business owners say they would not be able to survive more than six months without additional supports. Labour costs have risen sharply and commercial rents are climbing. Nearly half of the businesses surveyed say they cannot access the finance they need through the banks. In the restaurant sector alone, input costs have exploded. I have spoken in the House previously about the fact that beef prices are up by 96%, electricity costs are up by 94%, fruit and vegetable prices are up by 50% and staff costs are unsustainable.

The organisations the SFA represents are not faceless corporations; they are local businesses employing local people in every town and village in Ireland. They are the ones that are sponsoring the local GAA teams, the local markets and so on and they are giving young people their first job and creating real community wealth. As I have said before, when the Intels, the Apples and so on leave Ireland, they are the ones that will keep the economy going. We need to move beyond words, so I am asking the Minister for enterprise to bring forward budget 2026 proposals that include a temporary PRSI rebate for lower paid staff, a review of commercial rates and real reform of public procurement to make it accessible to SMEs. If we continue down the current path, it will be death by 1,000 cuts and we will look back and wonder why we let our economy bleed while we all watched.