Before I hand over to Deputy Hayes, I welcome the fact that provision has been made for decentralisation to my town of Listowel. I thank the Minister for Finance for doing that because it will provide a great boost to the town. I was very much involved in the campaign for decentralisation.
Financial Resolutions 2003. - Financial Resolution No. 5: General (Resumed).
Debate resumed on the following motion:
THAT it is expedient to amend the law relating to inland revenue (including value-added tax and excise) and to make further provision in connection with finance.
–(Minister for Agriculture and Food).
I am pleased to have an opportunity to comment on the budget and decentralisation, in particular, which has been a major issue since I became a Member of the House. During the by-election in which I was first elected, it was a major issue for towns in the constituency. One of the measures I had hoped would be introduced in my time as a Member of this House was a decent decentralisation programme. There was strong lobbying for that by representatives from various towns throughout the country, and I compliment the Government on the brave step it took in yesterday's budget. It is long overdue, badly needed and will have an enormous impact on the towns that did not benefit from the Celtic tiger and did not develop as rapidly as Dublin. Moving our public service out of Dublin is to be welcomed. For too long we developed the eastern region but problems were created as a result of that development. Decentralisation will not only benefit the towns involved but also the broader areas around them. It will give the towns a major facelift.
Tipperary town, which saw many closures, will get 200 jobs as a result of decentralisation. It was hugely dependent on agriculture in the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s but failed to adjust to the changes in the agriculture sector. That was proved by a survey which indicated that Tipperary town was the second poorest in the country. The jubilation in Tipperary town when it got the news that it would benefit from decentralisation was something I had never witnessed previously. Tipperary often won All-Ireland finals and there was great joy in the town as a result but there was as much joy in the town as a result of the announcement yesterday. On behalf of the people of Tipperary I welcome the decision to decentralise a Department to the town.
The other town which engaged in strong lobbying for decentralisation is Carrick-on-Suir. It fought a tough battle and it is very disappointed to lose out on this occasion. I note at the end of the list that there are some other jobs to be created in the future and I ask that Carrick-on-Suir be re-examined with a view to that. I know there is considerable sympathy within the Government for the case of Carrick-on-Suir.
I welcome the thrust of the decentralisation programme which I believe will have enormous benefit for future generations. I hope the concerns expressed by previous speakers do not come to fruition. We need to drive on this programme. It is easy to announce a plan which looks great on paper but we need to make it happen. Quarterly reports should be laid before this House over the coming years outlining the progress being made. Plans for other areas were announced in the past, including school building and hospital programmes etc., but they did not materialise. While I welcome this announcement and see the enormous benefit it will have, we need to move it forward.
The increase in excise duty on diesel is a harsh decision, particularly for those people who use road transport. The Irish Road Haulage Association has long expressed the belief that many of its members are under extreme financial pressure because of the high cost of insurance and other high costs incurred in their business. They were affected by being held up trying to get through certain towns which were not bypassed, and they found their businesses in difficulty. I was disappointed an extra cost was put on those people.
The question of job losses in the agri-sector was not properly addressed yesterday. The new decoupling payments scheme that was announced will have a major impact on rural towns. The announcement that some jobs in Dairygold in Mitchelstown will be shed is a trend that will be experienced elsewhere in employment in the agricultural sector. It is now time to plan to maintain jobs in the sector. An assessment of the agriculture industry should be made to ascertain if there is potential for job creation.
I was amazed that additional funding was not allocated to the health sector. A new wing costing millions of euro was added to the local hospital in Clonmel but it has not been opened. Public representatives, including myself, have lobbied the Minister in this regard and I am surprised some announcement is not forthcoming regarding Clonmel hospital. As is the position in many other cases, this new wing has not been opened because the necessary resources are not available. I want answers to questions that have been asked in that regard and I request that this wing be opened as soon as possible.
I would like to know what the Government has against young people building their own homes given that there appears to be no encouragement to help them do so. Local authority charges are increasing. As can be seen from the recent Estimates, new charges are being introduced in local authority areas. The reintroduction of the first-time buyer's grant should have been considered. People earning low wages find it impossible to build their own houses and more people will go on to local authority housing waiting lists as a result. I urge the Government to consider some way of helping those people in the future because everyone aspires to owning their own home, yet there was no help for such people in the budget.
I heard the Minister for Education and Science say this morning that it was a great day for education. I hope he is right and that he publishes the list of the schools that will be developed next year as a result of the budget. We need more openness and transparency and fewer political promises. A decent schools building programme needs to be put in place.
I wish to share time, with the agreement of the House, with the Minister, Deputy Ó Cuív, and Deputy Michael Moynihan.
Agreed.
This is a good, balanced and inclusive budget. It promotes the sustainable development of the country in terms of employment, economic growth and the provision of new environmental and other infrastructure. It also respects the need for prudence in the management of our public finances as well as maintaining competitiveness. These policies will create the environment within which we can meet our commitments on social inclusion.
I want to focus on two issues which are especially relevant to my portfolio as Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. These are the national spatial strategy and local government finances. The national spatial strategy was agreed by the Government just a year ago as a 20 year planning framework for achieving balanced regional development. With the support of a spatial plan, we are focused on creating scale and critical mass at strategic regional locations, which will, in turn, be extended to wider areas. In doing so, all areas of the country will be allowed to grow to their potential.
The budget provisions on decentralisation demonstrate that the Government has a real and practical commitment to the regional policy agenda. The thrust of the decentralisation proposals is aimed at making a significant and well planned contribution to the objectives of the NSS. In addition to the public sector jobs which decentralisation will bring to different locations, the programme will also help to build investor confidence in regions. I am confident that the Government's leadership on decentralisation will encourage the private sector to follow. It should generate wider enterprise and business activity and attract further inward investment and employment to the regions.
In adopting priorities for decentralisation closely aligned with those of the national spatial strategy, the Government has optimised its potential role in achieving more balanced regional development. A striking example is the way in which the decentralisation programme will provide a good platform for the development of the new linked gateway of Athlone, Mullingar and Tullamore in the midlands. This vote of confidence will help to reinforce critical mass in the region and underpin its potential to support indigenous growth and attract investment.
Decentralisation's focus on gateways such as Limerick-Shannon, Sligo and Waterford and the nearby hubs of Wexford and Kilkenny will help to build their national scale and role and strengthen their ability to complement the scale of economic success already evident in Dublin. With six of the hubs identified under the national spatial strategy benefiting from the decentralisation proposals announced today and two of the remainder already having decentralised offices, the hubs are offered the opportunity to build on the key role envisaged from them under the strategy.
From a spatial perspective, there is much to be gained from the planned clustering of public service activities to promote ease of access and mutual co-operation. This will facilitate the more efficient and effective delivery of services with the support, for example, of shared facilities. Clustering also provides wider pools of talent from which promotional opportunities can be filled and a greater range of employment possibilities for partners and spouses.
The national spatial strategy and the decentralisation programme announced yesterday are also good for Dublin. The dynamic new urban and rural spatial structure to be developed fully over the next 20 years, to which decentralisation will make a significant contribution, will enable Dublin to play to its strengths as a strong, internationally competitive city region, driving both its economy and national development. It will enhance the economic and social potential of all regions and create the conditions under which more balanced development can be increasingly realised. This will ease the pressures on Dublin and facilitate solutions to its problems in areas such as transport and housing supply.
My participation, as Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, in the Cabinet committee which will drive decentralisation, demonstrates the Government's will and intent to align the implementation process with national spatial strategy requirements. In addition to the decentralisation programme, the Government has introduced a wide range of measures at national, regional and local level to implement the national spatial strategy. At national level, I am leading the process of embedding the strategy into the policies, programmes and activities of Government Departments and agencies. This will assist in ensuring that the strategy directs the spatial aspects of public sector programme, including the determination of investment priorities.
At regional level, regional authorities, working in conjunction with their constituent local authorities, are making good progress in developing regional planning guidelines to roll out the national spatial strategy in more detail. The guidelines which will emerge from this process are expected to be in place in all regions by the spring of next year.
At local level, planning authorities are putting in place local development frameworks and plans at the gateway and hub level. This will support a critical mass of development at strategic locations. Work on preparation of the development frameworks is well advanced in most of the gateways and hubs identified in the strategy. Other initiatives are under way to support the development of these centres as they expand to take on the regional development role envisaged for them under the national spatial strategy. The Cork area strategic plan, the Waterford planning land use and transportation study and the Riverside City initiative in Limerick are some examples.
The overall approach taken by the Government to decentralisation will strengthen the regional urban system and help to build up the investment and employment base of many strategically placed towns and the areas they influence. Decentralisation is a catalyst in supporting the process of growth which needs to be sustained in these towns.
The Government established a funding system for local authorities in 1999. It is beyond question that local government has gained from the new arrangements. In 2003, record general purpose allocations of more than €626 million were made available to local authorities from the local government fund. These grants have been increased by approximately 85% since the Government came into office in 1997, a significant achievement by any standards.
In 2004, local authorities face increasing expenditure demands on a range of fronts, including wage and salary increases arising from benchmarking, parallel benchmarking and Sustaining Progress. The recently published Book of Estimates showed that additional spending capacity of €38 million would be available in the local government fund in 2004 to assist local authorities in meeting these challenges. In the current budgetary context, €38 million represents a significant contribution to local government, equivalent to an increase of 6% on the current year in general purpose local government fund grants.
At the time, I indicated I was examining a range of other options to boost income to the fund even further. The outcome is the additional €30 million for the local government fund announced yesterday, which I am sure the House will join me in welcoming. This is an excellent result for local government. It underlines our commitments to fund local authorities, provide the resources necessary to allow local councils to maintain and deepen the range and quality of services to the public, and keep local government at the centre of the political agenda.
The additional €30 million will bring local government fund resources in 2004 to well over €1.2 billion. I anticipate that general purpose grants from the local government fund to local authorities in 2004 will increase by a minimum of 11% compared to 2003. Further specific purpose grant allocations will also be made to most major local authorities. I am satisfied these increases in local government fund grants will make an appropriate and fair contribution to meeting the increased costs of local authorities, including staffing costs, in 2004. They will also avoid the need for any undue increases in rates, fees and other local charges next year. I will announce details of allocations to local authorities in the coming days.
The local government sector has been subject to a rigorous and systematic verification process in line with Sustaining Progress. The report from the performance verification group, which my Department should receive next week, will highlight a range of customer service, IT and efficiency innovations taking place among local authorities. It is correct in current circumstances that the bar should be set high for local authorities in terms of improving value for money, customer service and, importantly, productivity. The verification process will continue to challenge local authorities with regard to this requirement of high performance now and for the future.
The time available does not permit me to make more than a passing reference to the other features of the budget which bear directly on the programmes for which I am responsible. Extension of the termination deadlines for the tax-based urban and town renewal schemes should ensure vital investment is not lost where unexpected delays have slowed progress on the relevant projects. In this way, the schemes should be able to realise fully the investment of €3.6 billion projected for them.
The capital envelopes initiative will bring more certainty to the financing of multi-annual programmes and more flexibility in the carry-over of funding from one year to the next. With an overall investment envelope of almost €34 billion in the five year period to 2008, our infrastructural deficit will continue to be redressed in a planned and systematic manner.
This budget is good for economic prosperity, employment and social inclusion, which will be delivered in a balanced manner in order that all our regions, as well as our urban centres and their rural hinterlands, will benefit. It provides a coherent framework for continued economic and social progress and I commend it to the House.
Cuireann sé áthas orm deis a bheith agam labhairt ar cháinaisnéis an lae inné.
Is cúis áthais dom gur tugadh ardú fial do na daoine atá ag brath ar chúnamh leasa shóisialaí, €10 do chuile duine atá ag brath ar an gcúnamh sin. Is mór an méid é sin do na daoine sin.
Is aisteach go mbíonn scaiftí a rá nach bhfuil an Rialtas seo ar an eite chlé mar, má bhreatnaíonn duine ar chúrsaí mar atá siad, tá os cionn dhá thrian de chaiteachtas go léir ag dul ar chúrsaí leighis, oideachais agus leasa shóisialaí.
Inné freisin, rinneadh rud fíor-thábhachtach ó thaobh na Gaeilge de, rud beag ach rud a chuideoidh go mór leis na mná tí ar fad a choinníonn an 24,000 scolairí a thagann go dtí an Gaeltacht chuile bhliain. Bhí na Coimisinéirí Ioncam ag cur in iúl do na mná tí agus d'eagraíochtaí na gColáistí Gaeilge go gcaithfidís cuntaisí iomlán a choinneáil ar ioncam ó scéim na bhfoghlaimeoirí Gaeilge sna blianta atá romhainn. Níorbh é méid an cháin ioncaim a bhí ag cur as do na mná tí ach chomh deacair agus bheadh sé cuntaisí iomlána a choinneáil, idirdhealú a dhéanamh idir costasaí an tí agus costasaí coinneáil na ngasúr. Bhí go leor acu a rá nach bhfeilfeadh sé iad, de bharr na hoibre agus na costasaí arda cuntasaíochta a bhainfeadh leis, leanúint leis an scéim.
Inné d'fhógair an tAire, ag leanúint an líne a thosaigh le cinneadh a thóg an tAire Airgeadais nuair a bhí mé i mo Sheanadóir, go dtabharfaidh faoiseamh iomlán cánach do na mná tí a choinníonn na Gaeilgeoirí. Ní amháin gur buntáiste sin do na mná tí sin, ach buntáiste mór a bheidh ann sa mhéid is go bhfásfaidh na coláistí do na mílte gasúr a thagann chuile bhliain ó cheithre hairde na hÉireann chun na Gaeltachta le Gaeilge a fhoghlaim agus le blás a fháil ar shaol éagsúil. Ba rud maith don nGaeltacht agus do phobal na tíre frí chéile é. Cuireadh ceist orm ar maidin faoi seo agus dúradh liom go raibh sé mar fhabhar do phobal na Gaeltachta. Níl náire orm a raibh gur rud maith é cúnamh a thabhairt don Ghaeilge. Tá scéim faoiseamh cánach eile, an rent a room allowance, a bhaintear an-úsáid as sna cathracha atá an-chosúil leis an rud atá déanta anois.
Yesterday was an important day for rural Ireland. As Minister with responsibility for rural development, I welcome the Government's decision to proceed with the most radical decentralisation programme ever. There will be State offices in every county in Ireland. If young people want to join the public service, they will be able to get a job in their own region. The decision to spread the public service throughout the country will not only aid and balance rural spatial development, but it will also ensure that the Government's perspective is based on a public service, particularly at the top level, whose views reflect what is happening throughout the State rather than just in Dublin. That will bring a divergence and richness to the thought processes of Government, which will benefit everyone.
As someone who comes from this city, I know that the tragedy of the past 30 or 40 years has been that the growth of the city has far exceeded its capacity, both socially and infrastructurally, to deal with it. Time and again politicians have rightly said it has been a major injustice to build huge housing estates without providing the social and physical infrastructure simultaneously. I hope decentralisation means that the city will get a chance to catch up with itself in terms of providing the necessary infrastructure. Infrastructure should usually remain good for 20 or 30 years. We are in a good position in that the major investment in infrastructure in the west means we can look forward to absorbing any new growth without destroying people's lives.
I was pleased today to receive an e-mail from a school in County Mayo which had made a plea that its numbers were down. The decision to locate my Department and another Department in County Mayo is welcome because it will boost the numbers in that parish. It will allow young people in that parish to get public service jobs in their county. That, in turn, will create more growth which will mean that the schools which are operating under capacity and looking for pupils, and the other institutions of rural parishes, will be maintained.
It is a radical move. There are issues which must be dealt with, but I do not have any doubt that if we work together and on a voluntary basis we will complete the programme within the three years. As one of the Ministers involved, I will immediately set in train the steps to ensure it is implemented.
I am pleased the Minister for Finance has agreed to make the finance available for the rural social scheme. Many people will argue this is community employment in another guise. However, people living in rural areas treated community employment as a different type of scheme. We all know the reality was different from people's perception. Community employment is and will continue to be a labour force intervention. Its purpose is to provide training and permanent jobs for people who are long-term unemployed. However, that was not the case for many small farmers. Although they were great participants in the community employment scheme, it was not designed for their requirements. They were not looking for training to get a full-time job because they already had a job, but for supplementary employment and income in their parishes so their farming enterprises could become viable. As a result of changes in world farming, many farms which were viable 30 or 40 years ago are not viable any longer. Farm assist is a help, but all means-tested payments come at a price. It is beneficial and important that people have an extra fixed income as well as the social interaction associated with employment, particularly with modern farming practices.
As the CE scheme is a labour force intervention, there is a cap on the number of years a person can avail of it. As the rural social scheme is not a labour force intervention but a means of providing local farmers, who need income support, with work and incomes and of providing services in local communities, there will not be a cap on the total number of years a person can avail of it. If there are more applicants than places on the scheme, those longest on it will leave it for a duration and those seeking to avail of it will be accommodated. However, the following year those who were laid off the scheme will be able to reapply and since they will be the new entrants, they will be able to avail of it as the revolving system means that those longest on it must leave. If there is a big demand for the scheme and enough places are not available, there will be periodic lay-offs.
I have experience in this area and I know this will be a major step forward on two grounds. First, one can continue to avail of the scheme during one's lifetime in farming. Second, the community groups organising the scheme will be able to maintain a motivated workforce which will provide essential services in their communities. The scheme is about service provision, such as meals on wheels, day care services for the elderly, the tidy town and village enhancement schemes and the maintenance required in community and sports facilities. It will have the added advantage of longer continuity in terms of the labour force than heretofore. The farmers who should not have been on the CE scheme, as it was not designed for them, will now move to the new scheme and that will free up places on the CE scheme at urban and rural level for those for whom it was designed, namely, people who are looking for training to get into the workforce.
We will achieve an aim I set out in the detailed agricultural policy document, which I wrote on behalf of the Fianna Fáil Party prior to the last election, in the party's manifesto and in the programme for Government. The programmes I outlined will be brought into force. I am pleased that such progress has been made for rural Ireland. I could say many more about the budget if I had more time.
Molaim cáinaisnéis an lae inné. Thug sé aire faoi leith ó thaobh an chórais chánach d'fheirmeoirí agus do na daoine eile atá ar ioncam íseal.
I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the budget for 2004. There are a number of issues that I want to address, but first among them is the radical decision of the Government to decentralise Departments from Dublin to the regions. In my part of Cork North-West, Kanturk, it was received with joy and jubilation. The decision on decentralisation means the most to small places like Kanturk and other small, rural provincial towns. A lot of the major centres of population throughout Ireland, and the larger towns, have industry and are situated strategically. However, Kanturk had a difficulty in acquiring industry for many years. It was an old market town where the decline of traditional industries led to the decline of the town. In 2000, the town renewal scheme was established, which helped, but the announcement by the Minister for Finance that 100 jobs are coming to Kanturk is extremely important to the region.
I am delighted this has come to pass, as before I contested the 1997 general election it was one of the main planks of my campaign that if I was elected I would do what I could to secure a Department, or part thereof, for the constituents of Cork North-West. That was contained in a press release issued on 17 February 1997. Many people said over the previous five to six years that it was a pipe dream and nonsense.
The jobs are not there yet.
The announcement has been made.
Deputy Shortall is lucky she did not lose Dublin Airport.
In an article in last Thursday's edition of the local newspaper, The Corkman, Opposition Deputies stated there was no commitment from the Government on decentralisation for Kanturk, County Cork. They even added that after putting down a question to the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, the prospect of decentralisation was far away. In my election literature in 2002, I said I would do everything possible to secure decentralisation for the area.
I am delighted the Government has committed itself to decentralisation for Kanturk. The Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, the Minister for Finance, the Minister for Health and Children and many other Ministers have been bombarded occasionally on this issue by our people in Kanturk.
When the announcement was made in December 1999, a group of us got together in February 2000, on behalf of Kanturk, to submit a proposal to the Department of Finance. We went through the various details and information the Department of Finance required to allow us to put the case for Kanturk in terms of educational facilities, etc.
I have been interested in some of the comments from the other side of the House since the decentralisation programme was announced. Some Deputies said it would be impossible to run a decentralised Department and to have the heads of Departments outside the Dublin area. They said it would not be possible for them to function properly. This is a farce. We are a small country, not global, we can work as easily from Kanturk as we can from Kildare Street.
Some of the issues have been addressed. Over the last six or seven years, I have interacted with the public service and Civil Service as a Member of Dáil Eireann, and I found a lot of people had come from the regions to Dublin as civil servants. They joined the Civil Service at a young age and settled in Dublin because of the State jobs that were provided. There are a lot of people, particularly from my region, not alone from Kanturk but my home village of Kiskeam, that left their area to move to Dublin for a job. The opportunity will now be given to those people to pursue a career in the public service or Civil Service in rural Ireland without the drawbacks of the mad rush which is part of life in the capital. It is great news that people will not have to go to the capital for State jobs.
The decentralisation programmes which have taken place previously have worked well, including the moves to Ballina and moving the primary sector headquarters of the Department of Education and Science to Tullamore. I look forward to the new scheme.
The Government announced in 1999 that decentralisation would take place. It has now been announced only to be treated with scepticism by Opposition Members. They question when it will happen and when the blocks will be laid. They want to know when the buildings are going to be opened. We could not lay the foundations or open the buildings until we made the decision to do it. The Government is to be commended for doing this and making the announcement in the first place. It was a tough political decision. Some people have called it a political gamble before the local elections and suggested we were afraid to do it prior to this. However, in the few minutes that remain to me, I welcome the decision by the Government and compliment and thank the Ministers who met us at the far end of the country when we were lobbying for the Kanturk and Duhallow area. It is fantastic news for Kanturk and was greeted with great emotion last night. I am delighted that my political pledge in 2002 and 1997 has been honoured.
The new jobs initiative, especially the social economy jobs for small farmers, is excellent. For one reason or another they have fallen outside the CE scheme. This allows small farmers to get a legitimate job and supplement their income. There are great pressures on small farmers with agriculture in decline and the need for a critical mass of agriculture in the future. This is a new initiative which is innovative and will produce positive benefits for people on farm assistance and other social welfare payments.
On the extension of the town renewal scheme, I am aware that the scheme was due to end on 31 January 2004. I welcome the Minister's decision to extend it until 31 July 2006. This will be welcomed in each of the 100 towns across Ireland that benefited from the town renewal scheme. In the early days of the town renewal scheme, especially in Kanturk and Charleville, very little advantage was taken of the scheme in the first year or two. From what we know at this stage, according to the county council which is issuing the primary certificate, there is substantial growth in the numbers taking advantage of the scheme.
I am delighted to be given the opportunity to speak on the budget which has so many good things in it. This budget will be known as the decentralisation budget as it is innovative.
That is exactly what it is.
I hope it will be well received. We will be in this House in three or four years discussing the benefits which will have accrued to rural towns. I know those on the Opposition benches who have welcomed decentralisation to their locations will be saying, when the jobs come in, that it was the kick start that provincial towns needed. I commend the Government for this initiative.
I will be sharing my time with Deputies Shortall and Wall.
I am glad Deputy Moynihan admits it was a decentralisation budget. It is good to hear someone being truthful, as it was certainly not a budget for poor people or those on the margins.
Amid the euphoria over decentralisation, I made a speech yesterday in which I said there was no consideration of the thousands of social welfare recipients who were hammered by the savage 16 cuts. I would not expect the Minister for Finance, Deputy McCreevy, to refer to them as he was the author of the "dirty dozen". There is a link between them.
In 1999 I brought a motion to Westmeath County Council asking for a comprehensive and integrated submission on decentralisation from Mullingar Town Council, Westmeath County Council, the chamber of commerce, the local trades council, the county enterprise board and the local development groups. Mullingar is ideally suited to and strategically located for decentralisation and is the only midlands town that was never favoured before, despite its excellent infrastructural and recreational facilities, good opportunities, good educational establishments and many other positive points. I have no doubt people will enjoy their time in Mullingar and they will be very welcome. We will have places to which they can come and we hope it happens within the three year period.
Unfortunately, yesterday evening the reality of life for 116 employees of Penn Racquet Sports Limited, which has manufactured tennis balls since 1974, took a downward turn. Facing into Christmas, they were told they were being made redundant. It has tempered the excitement in Mullingar, but that is how life goes on. We must bear these important issues in mind.
While half the speech of the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs was devoted to decentralisation, there was not a single mention of the social welfare cuts. This was despite the outcry of more than a dozen voluntary and charitable organisations such as OPEN, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Threshold and the Simon Community, which condemned the cuts. The Minister could not even bring herself to respond to these concerns about yesterday's budget. I resent the Minister's remark that the Opposition sees those in need of social support as political playthings. I come from that background myself – I was the eldest of ten in a county council house with no water and an outdoor toilet. I remember when two or three pints of milk were given to families when children were born as an important addition to the family budget. I speak about these matters with passion because I have experience of them.
Although some people have spent their lives in cocoons, I have never forgotten what it was like to see my parents struggling to scrape a living. I remember when my family depended on my father's wage of £3 a week. I am not here to make political capital out of anyone's misfortune and I deeply resent the Minister's remarks. I have never used people for political capital. I said in the House that I was prepared to pay the extra 1 cent in the euro if that was what it took to undo the €58 million in cuts. Socialism is about solidarity, fraternity and a sense of community. It is about remembering where one comes from in order to get somewhere, being prepared to give rather than take and promoting the idea of "us"rather than "me", which is the opposite of the policy practised by the Tories in the UK and which nearly brought the country to its knees.
I am here to effect change, not as a personal crusade but as the Labour Party representative. I come from a proud party which was founded in 1912. We believe in this. If we must have a tax and spend policy, let us spend on the poor, the marginalised and the 5,000 or 6,000 people who are homeless across the country tonight. There is no shame in articulating their vision and their concerns in the Chamber. That is what I am here for and no snide comments will put me off that track.
These criticisms of yesterday's budget did not come from me. The renowned writer Justine McCarthy said the 16 cutbacks, when viewed with earlier decisions such as the cutback in the job initiative and CE schemes, were ringing alarm bells about the Government's fiscal policy. When the Minister talks about capping rent supplements the issue of abuse of the system is always skirted around, yet when we ask questions no one can name any particular abuse. Would it not be more logical to cap the rent charged by landlords? If we want a proper social policy this is what we should do. Landlords already have great property rights. Why, for the common good, should we not ensure they charge reasonable rent? That is how we could achieve a change in social policy. If I had a place to rent I would not pass bitter remarks about this.
Various organisations have made remarks about the cutbacks in the area of social welfare. OPEN, representing lone parent groups, said: "The Government clearly believes that it is now acceptable to further marginalise one-parent families despite their continuing poverty and a major housing crisis." The Simon Community said the cuts were "a backward step" and that they "will lead to greater hardship for those trying to establish themselves in the private rented housing market." Professor John Monaghan, the vice president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, said: "It makes a nonsense of any argument from the Government that they are serious about tackling child poverty." Ray Dooley of the Children's Rights Alliance said the measures "will exacerbate the overwhelming vulnerability of children in [one] parent families to poverty." Patrick Burke, director of Threshold, said: "Without this [rent] allowance people who leave home in a crisis situation may have no other choice than to become homeless." The Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed says the cuts are "an attack on unemployed people." Tony Walsh of SIPTU said: "The Government should rethink its proposals and avoid creating further poverty traps with all of the consequential social issues that flow from them," and Pat Bolger, vice-chairman of IMPACT's community welfare officers' group, said: "The Minister is pulling away the social safety net from thousands of social welfare recipients and their children." I did not write these comments which were made by people who are in the know.
Last week, as chairperson of the Joint Committee on Social and Family Affairs, I published, along with my colleagues of all parties, the report of the committee on the position of full-time carers. It contained a number of proposals such as the abolition of the means test and a move to home care subvention. I am not a fool, however. To prove that I do not take political advantage, I even admitted that some of our aims could not be achieved. I received 500% support from everybody, however, when I said that where persons who provide care are recipients of widow's pension or social welfare payments, 50% of the carer's allowance should be paid. We should cut through the nonsense and ensure that people who are receiving social welfare payments and caring for somebody, who may be an adult of 36 or a child with Down's syndrome, receive some portion of the allowance as recognition for saving the State many millions of euro. The top 400 earners in this country are receiving property capital development allowances worth €70 million, yet the Government took €58 million from the social welfare budget.
A total of €11 billion was given.
I accept that, but there were still cuts of €58 million.
There has never been a budget like it.
If there has to be a cut, why should it not affect these 400 people? Why did the Government not look at the stallion industry, in which we do not even know how much people earn?
Hear, hear.
Is that another tax shelter that cannot be touched? What about the tax exiles, the bed and breakfast people who arrive and leave without paying any tax? These are the shelters we should be considering. We should have equity and fairness in the system and I am prepared to pay more to achieve this. Those who are in a position to pay more should do so – they should ensure that the people at the bottom are protected. I am not making this up. If the Minister of State wants to rubbish the Community Platform, which consists of 26 organisations, that is his prerogative, but I will not do so. Those people are at the coalface. They know what is happening and they are talking about it.
On the matter of restrictions on rent supplements, sending clients to local authorities for assessment will result in the local authority housing list being swamped. Clients other than single people are already referred to the local authority. Single people, particularly single males, do not receive any priority on the housing list.
They will not be assessed unless there is a house available.
That is true. The need for rent supplements has been independently established. In any event it is already the practice, backed up by legislation, not to pay supplement to those leaving local authority housing. Those issues are important. The crèche supplement about which the Minister spoke today is not being cut, it is being reformed. Dietary supplements are another area of concern. Thankfully, as anyone who looks at me can see I am healthy and can eat everything.
The Deputy is not shy at the table.
He looks well.
I am not shy at the table. I saw the days when rabbit was part of the staple diet, and good food as well. I am not ashamed to admit that either. I only learned recently about the cost of food supplements for people on a gluten-free diet. There are two doctors in the House who know their business much better than I do. It costs around €4.90 a loaf. The ordinary loaf is about €1.35. This is important in that context. The sum involved is not large. Perhaps all these matters need reform and should be examined. However, a supplement should not be taken away until every option is examined. The problem about this is there is no joined-up government, to use the buzz phrase one hears across the water to which I do not pay much attention. The Minister says she is not a housing authority and one accepts that. However, it is important that the local authorities, the health boards, the Department of Social and Family Affairs and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government all come together and say where all those people fit in.
The Minister stated that the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform as well as her own Department and the health boards are coming together as regards crèche supplements. Crèche payments are normally made on behalf of children aged two and a half to four years for pre-school for a few hours every morning. They are generally paid on the basis of social need or whatever. This is of incalculable benefit to the children and their parents. I see the Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Deputy Callely, in the House. I know he is dealing with the other end of the scale, but this issue could properly come within the remit of health or education. I am not here to bury my head in the sand. If there are practical solutions, let us find them. The saving from this measure is the penurious sum of €1.5 million.
The committee recommended that where a person gives up a job to provide care, the 15 month restriction on the payment of carer's benefit should be waived while he or she continues to provide care. That would not cost a fortune. I know that €150 million to €200 million to abolish the means test is big money, so this should be done over a period of time. The report reflects a cross-party view on this issue. It might not be the best but it was written by the committee without the aid of consultants. There was a fair degree of consensus and recognition of the problems.
It is great to see the respite care grant increased, but Deputy Callely should persuade the relevant Department to pay the €800 to the widow or widower who is look after someone for 52 weeks of the year. I know the Minister of State appreciates what is involved here. People in that situation should be able to buy a bit of respite care and have a break. This is absolutely essential and is the badge of a caring compassionate society. It has not happened yet although I hope the Government will make an announcement in this regard.
It will be done. We have a package for carers.
I am delighted. The quicker it comes the better. There is a strict payment date as regards respite, where people lose out by a day or two. These are issues about which I feel strongly.
The Deputy has one minute left.
I could speak for a month.
The Deputy should get up on Deputy Rabbitte's back.
On the exclusion of spouses from the supplementary welfare allowance, this will have a significant effect on families in the small number of cases where it is used. An example would be a family with three children renting a house where the husband is in low-paid employment, earning approximately €300 per week. If the wife applies for supplementary welfare they could receive rent supplement and the household would have €317 a week. If this is withdrawn, the husband has no option but to go back on the welfare. Such poverty traps are being created and it is important to ensure as changes are made that a trap is not left behind for somebody. Some 8% of all children live in households where the income is below 60% of the average industrial wage. The €6 increase in child benefit is welcome. I recall the time when a first child in a family was worth half the second child. However, there is no increase in the child dependant allowance, no medical cards for children and no mention of the Government's proposal to bring in 200,000 medical cards as a safety net for people on low incomes. I will have much more to say on this next week.
I want to respond to the comments made by the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Ó Cuív, this evening. He spent his time singing his own praises for having secured 2,500 places on the new rural community scheme. I give him credit for doing that and it is a welcome development. This new scheme will go some way towards making up for the loss of 10,000 community employment scheme jobs over the past couple of years. However, I would remind Deputy Ó Cuív of his responsibility for urban as well as rural communities. It is about time he honoured those responsibilities. To date, he has utterly failed those communities in urban Ireland that have been most ravaged by the drugs problem, the 13 drugs task force areas that are among the poorest in the country. He has done little or nothing for them since he became Minister.
I would remind him in particular about his obligations to fund the drugs task force programmes, which he has failed to do. He has left the drugs task force hanging on, waiting for funding for its programmes. He has completely failed to come up with the promised second round of funding for youth facilities in those areas in which they are so badly needed. These are areas with a high incidence of drug abuse where large numbers drop out of school early and where little or nothing is provided in terms of facilities. The Minister has completely failed those people and promised funding has not materialised.
He has also utterly failed in the RAPID programme. A previous Minister of State with responsibility for drugs, Deputy Eoin Ryan, promised €2 million in transfers to areas most in need. People's hopes were built up. The money was provided to draw up the plans and employ co-ordinators. These people were brought up the mountain and now their hopes have been dashed by being told that no money is available for the RAPID programme. It is all very well to boast about a small initiative in rural Ireland, but the Minister has completely and utterly failed the poorest communities in our cities. He must remember that he has responsibility in this area. He has been a disaster to date in that regard.
I want to address one of the savage 16 cuts, referred to by Deputy Penrose. One of the most savage and cruellest initiatives was the cut in the crèche supplement. It affects three day nurseries in my constituency, two in Ballymun and one in Finglas south. Deputy Callely will be aware of these day nurseries that are part-funded by the health board, one of which is located in Kilbarrack in his own constituency. Those day nurseries provide pre-school services for the most disadvantaged children in this country. The two nurseries in Ballymun cater for children of single-parent families which are totally dependent on social welfare. They live in areas of serious disadvantage, with poor health status in the community. There are poor community supports. These children are referred to day nurseries by public health nurses or the Mater child guidance clinic. They are referred for educational, social and medical intervention at two to three years of age because of concerns for their future welfare.
Some 70% of children in Ballymun have left the education system before taking the leaving certificate. It is a terrible indictment of the Government that this is happening in 2003. Last year, fewer than 1% of children in Ballymun took up third level education. If this does not make the case for serious pre-school intervention, nothing will. Through the great efforts of local people, including a number of religious, day nurseries were established to provide early education intervention for children who are most at risk. They are part-funded by the health board but their existence is entirely dependent on a small crèche supplement from the Department of Social and Family Affairs. It is a tiny payment which has enabled these children and their parents to avail of the service and enable it to continue.
The Minister, Deputy Coughlan, who pretends to be such a caring Minister, could not give a damn about the effect of her cuts on these children who attend health board day nurseries. She has taken away that supplement and jeopardised these children's future and the future of the services. When she and Deputy Carey were put under pressure about this savage cut, they said they would approach the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to see what could be done. No money is available from that Minister. He is too busy providing grant aid for crèches in areas where the money is not exactly needed to support industry.
That is not true.
No one in Government is taking responsibility for child care provision for children from dysfunctional families. These families are too poor to assist their own children to develop or attend any other facility. No one among the 15 Ministers and various Ministers of State is prepared to take responsibility in this regard. Yesterday the Minister, Deputy Coughlan, admitted as much in reply to a question I tabled to her. She said she will have discussions with the health board to see if more money can be made available.
The Deputy is wrong.
Perhaps the Minister for Health and Children who is present will take responsibility for making up the shortfall caused by the cuts imposed by the Minister, Deputy Coughlan. He should take responsibility for this and ensure that the children attending day nurseries, who are the most disadvantaged children in the country, will not be denied a crucial pre-school service which is essential for their future. Will the Minister, Deputy Martin, take responsibility for this because the Ministers for Social and Family Affairs and Justice, Equality and Law Reform will not do so?
I am appalled at the Deputy's lack of knowledge.
There may be another report.
I welcome the move to multi-annual funding in the transport area. Some €7 billion has been allocated for roads over the next five years. There is no point providing large sums of money for road projects unless serious steps are taken to ensure we get value for money. The ESRI mid-term review of spending on roads for the first half of the national development plan showed serious difficulties in project management. We built fewer roads for more money, which cannot be allowed to continue. There is a serious problem with project management and the type of contracts in use. Announcing funding is one thing but ensuring taxpayers get value for money is a different matter. There is an onus on the Minister, Deputy Brennan, to introduce a new type of fixed-cost contract which will ensure we get value for money.
We spoke to the National Roads Authority yesterday.
The Minister of State has been talking about it for a long time. He has been in office long enough and it is time he reformed this area to ensure we get value for money.
The allocation for public transport was disappointing. Just one third of the amount spent on roads is spent on public transport. Yesterday, a spokesperson for the Dublin Chamber of Commerce said that traffic congestion in the Dublin area is costing the business community €3 billion. Unless we get this right and the Minister ensures there is a greater allocation of money for public transport, the city will come to a standstill.
I thank Deputy Penrose for sharing his time with me and allowing me to speak on the budget. I welcome the bean an tí tax exemption, the changes to farm leasing and decentralisation. I hope the last one will take place in my lifetime. It was promised previously but it did not happen.
There is nothing in the budget or the Estimates about the 100,000 people on the hospital waiting lists. Some of these people whom I see in my surgery are waiting to get on the official waiting list, which the Government said would be eliminated in 155 days. I will not hold my breath.
The Minister increased the price of cigarettes by just 25 cent, which is a terrible indictment of the Government. International research indicates that, if the price of cigarettes is increased, people will cut down on smoking. The Government will take the shilling rather than take the health of the nation into consideration. This exposes its hypocrisy about the smoking ban, with which I agree. It is a bit of a smokescreen for the inequality that exists in the health service. We will soon be grading hospitals by trolley capacity rather than bed capacity. The Government believed that, if it increased the price of cigarettes, people would no longer buy them, which would have been a good thing from my point of view but apparently not so from the Government's point of view.
Given that the Government did not increase the price of alcohol, it is no wonder we have an alcohol problem. The Tánaiste said she would not like the drinks industry to receive less revenue. I do not agree with this. It is unacceptable that the Government did not help the problem by increasing excise duty on alcohol.
There are many reports on the health service. However, what is needed is proper funding, not reports. While 3,000 beds were promised, not even half the number promised in the first year were provided. Funding is not provided for this in the budget. The manager of Mayo General Hospital was on radio asking people not to go to the hospital because of overcrowding and the crisis there. What was once a winter crisis is now a year long crisis but the budget does nothing to solve the problem.
There are fewer people than ever on medical cards. The figure of 37.5% in 1988 was reduced to 29.4% in 2002, which included the rich people over the age of 70. It is not acceptable that 200,000 people on the breadline should be without a medical card.
There is no reference to community employment schemes or a special category for people who cannot get employment. These people, who took part in CE schemes because of their chronic disability, will not be helped by the budget.
On housing, where is the defined revenue funding scheme to allow communities build more houses and support people in their own communities? There are local authority and Western Health Board schemes to repair housing. There is €15 million for Punchestown and much more for horseracing prizes and so on, but where is the funding for people?
Today, the Select Committee on Health and Children dealt with the Supplementary Estimate. The Minister requested €10 million for legal expenses in respect of the Lindsay tribunal. It would have been much better had the Government given the money to the haemophiliacs who deserve it rather than giving senior counsel €2,500 and junior counsel €1,400 for a morning's work, which is scandalous and a terrible waste of money.
I wish to share my time with Deputies Brendan Smith, Devins and Callanan.
Before proceeding to the main point of my speech I wish to concentrate on issues in the budget in terms of disability and other provisions. I cannot let go Deputy Shortall's comments on the crèche supplement. There is a gross distortion of the position of child care funding. Some years ago the Government took a clear decision to identify the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform as the key Department for the allocation of funding for child care projects across the country. That was done in accordance with a national plan which involved county committees of child care and a logical progression and development of child care facilities in every parish and community. Hundreds of millions of euro have been spent since then on child care facilities.
The charge Deputy Shortall made that there is nobody in charge of child care policy is false and demonstrably untrue. What has happened in this case, from what I can observe, is that a particular supplement which was introduced for the purpose of providing assistance to the parents of children in need of short-term emergency support, in certain areas, particularly those mentioned, became mainstreamed as permanent funding for crèches. That was never the intention of the child crèche supplement.
Is the funding inadequate?
No, it is inappropriate. People may develop local solutions but that is not the way to proceed. In terms of the provision of a comprehensive child care facility, particularly in areas of disadvantage, funding is available. In my constituency where people made submissions to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, they were assessed by the committee that analyses such submissions and funding was provided. When advising local communities on how crèches should be funded we need to get it right. If ad hoc solutions develop over time they are inadequate when a change is made to a particular scheme which was never meant as mainstream funding for personnel in child care projects. It is wrong to make political propaganda of the position, to distort the reality and go on a political rant about it.
The Minister for Social and Family Affairs is on record as saying she is in discussions with the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and health boards to ensure appropriate alternative measures are put in place. She said today that no crèche will close as a result of the change she has made to crèche supplements, and she should be taken at her word. If we could put the politics to one side and concentrate on alleviating the difficulties parents perceive with the provision of crèche facilities it would be better for everyone.
The Abridged Estimates Volume published in November provides a gross total estimate of over €10 billion for the health service, an increase of 10% on the Revised Estimate for 2003. This significant level of funding has been further increased in the budget for 2004, which my colleague, the Minister for Finance, Deputy McCreevy, announced yesterday.
I welcome the €26.6 million in additional current expenditure made available by the Minister for Finance in the budget for services for people with disabilities and the increase in health allowances in line with social welfare increases.
An additional €18 million will be used to provide additional emergency placements and extra day services, especially for school leavers and to enhance the health related support service for children. I will allocate capital funding for these services from within my 2004 allocation following a review of priorities within the overall capital programme.
Since 1997 there has been an unprecedented level of investment in the health-funded support services for people with disabilities. Additional funding amounting to €605 million has been invested in these services. This unprecedented level of additional funding has enabled substantial progress to be made with regard to the development of residential, respite, day, therapy and other support services for people with disabilities.
Since 1996 there has been significant growth in the level of provision of full-time residential services, residential support services and day services reported on the national intellectual disability database reflecting, in particular, the significant investment programme in the intellectual disability sector between 2000 and 2002. Key developments noted in the 2002 report include a 37% growth in the number of people with intellectual disability living in full-time residential placements within local communities; a 165% increase in the provision of intensive placements designed to meet the needs of individuals with challenging behaviours; a 47% reduction in the number of people accommodated in psychiatric hospitals; a continued expansion in the availability of residential support services, in particular service-based respite services, which have grown by 255% since 1997, with an additional 443 people reported as being in receipt of these services between 2001 and 2002 alone; and increased provision in almost all areas of adult day services and in the level of other support services delivered as part of a package of day services to both children and adults.
We have also funded alternative placements and an enhanced level of services for persons with an intellectual disability or autism who were resident in psychiatric hospitals or other inappropriate placements. The number of persons accommodated in psychiatric hospitals in May 2003 was 438. This is down from 571 in 2001 and from 970 in 1996. The new accommodation provided includes community-based homes and a number of residential and day complexes.
In addition to providing funding for new service developments, we have also made a significant allocation to meet identified needs in existing services. These needs arise as a result of the changing profile of persons with an intellectual disability. An increasing number of older and medically fragile persons are cared for as a result of the provision of funding for residential services. There are also issues such as underfunding of base budgets, including the need to consolidate elements of services previously funded from sources such as fundraising. In the past my Department has sought to address these issues as resources have permitted.
A sum of €3 million is being made available for services for those with physical or sensory disabilities to meet priority service pressures as identified by the Eastern Regional Health Authority and the health boards in consultation with other relevant agencies. These service pressures include respite, home supports, services for people with significant disabilities, support services for children with disabilities and the provision of aids and appliances. There are approximately 2,000 people with significant long-term disabilities who require constant nursing care and supports and who are inappropriately placed in nursing homes for older people and acute hospital beds. This funding will enable some of those to be transferred to appropriate settings.
A sum of €3 million is being made available towards the alleviation of the under-resourcing of the voluntary sector service providers who are responsible for the provision of a wide range of services to those with physical and sensory disabilities.
Historically, many of the existing services provided by voluntary agencies were developed in the absence of publicly funded services. The growth of these services has been demand-led, with finance being provided mainly through voluntary fundraising and section 65 grants from health boards. However, the latter grants have historically resulted in financial difficulties for a number of organisations as their services have grown and their fundraising income has declined, with many of the main service providers incurring ongoing, accumulating deficits.
The intermittent financial support from health boards has also led to an uncertain provision of services. In an effort to prevent further core deficits from arising, it is intended that in future, health and personal social services being provided by voluntary sector service providers will be funded under section 26 of the Health Act 1970. In 2003, €8.453 million has been allocated to alleviate the problems of the larger service providers. The allocation of this additional €6 million is further evidence of the Government's commitment to these services and to supporting those with disabilities and their families.
Health allowances are being increased in the budget in line with those received by social welfare recipients with effect from January 2004. A total of €4.7 million is being provided for this purpose in 2004, of which €3.1 million was provided in the Estimates published last November.
The mental health needs of prisoners have been a particular cause of concern for some time and, on this occasion, €1 million additional revenue funding is being allocated to the Central Mental Hospital to enable it to increase its capacity to admit prisoners with a mental illness. I am pleased to announce that €1 million capital will be made available also to the hospital in 2004 to undertake the necessary refurbishment works to support this initiative.
I was pleased to have had the opportunity to visit the Central Mental Hospital in February 2003 and to meet staff and patients there. I was impressed with the work undertaken at the hospital and by the dedication of the staff, who carry out their work in difficult physical conditions.
The Central Mental Hospital provides a forensic service for the entire country. It admits patients directly from the courts and from the Prison Service and, to a lesser extent, local mental health services around the country. The physical conditions at the hospital are not satisfactory. Most of the old building is unsuited to its current purpose. Since 1999, €500,000 has been spent on refurbishment at the hospital but there is an acceptance by all parties that more substantial redevelopment is required.
On the occasion of my visit to the Central Mental Hospital, I established a project team to examine the various options for the redevelopment of the hospital and I expect to receive its recommendations early next year. We have also drawn up a service level agreement for the admission of mentally ill prisoners to the Central Mental Hospital and the additional funding I am announcing today will enable the hospital to start that process.
In response to Deputy Cowley and others, we have achieved much with our investment in the health services. I will circulate to him a copy of the evaluation report of the national cancer strategy which I launched today, which shows significant progress in the past five years in cancer services in the State. People in the House should acknowledge the progress that has been made.
What about oncology?
The Deputy is interrupting when he should be reading the report and looking at the graphs comparing figures in 1996 to figures now. There is no comparison between the provision of services. That is not to say that we are not some distance away from where we should be in terms of international standards.
What about the position in 1992? Why this fixation with 1996?
The cancer strategy was launched in 1996.
I am aware of that.
That is why we use 1996 as the benchmark.
It could have been launched before then.
Hospital activities have increased and in-patient and day care services reached almost 1 million in 2002. Waiting lists continue to fall dramatically. From June 2002 to June 2003 the number in major surgical specialties decreased by 43% and the number of children waiting for treatment in target specialties declined by 57%. We are well on the way to meeting the targets in the national health strategy.
Those figures are false.
Every health board area outside Dublin met the targets set out in the national health strategy. It took longer than we wanted but the targets for 12 months and six months have been achieved.
Manufactured figures.
The national treatment purchase fund has been a major success and will have an enhanced role moving forward.
We must get real about what we are doing. People can criticise, I have no problem with that, but listening to what some say, it is as if nothing has been invested and nothing has happened. The bottom line is that, year on year, we are now at 98% of the average spending of the 14 EU countries. Our public health expenditure per capita in 2001 was $15 purchasing power parity. We have had year on year spending increases of 18.2% in 2002, 12.4% in 2003 and 10.7% for 2004. These increases will bring Ireland above the EU average for the current year. I thank Deputies for the freedom they allowed me to articulate my views.
The Minister was skating on thin ice.
I welcome the opportunity to speak on the budget. Budget day is when the Minister for Finance sets out his vision for the coming year and puts in place the strategic direction for the country for the next few years. The Minister for Finance, Deputy McCreevy, has now presented seven budgets and in that time we have witnessed a remarkable change in terms of economic and social inclusion in Ireland. We have moved from the era of high taxation to having the lowest tax base in the European Union. Recently there was a severe downturn in the international economy. We have weathered this better than most of our neighbours and we are poised to reap the benefit of growth in international trade.
At the same time, the less well off have had their benefits increased by much more than inflation. It is worth noting that the improvements in social welfare this year will cost €630 million, an increase of €100 million on 2002. I also welcome the decision to pay all social welfare increases from 1 January. This contrasts sharply with the situation some years ago when recipients of social welfare increases had to wait for up to five months before they got the increases ordained in the budget.
Due to the changes implemented by the Minister, the old age pension now stands at €167 per week. Last year, Fianna Fáil promised to deliver an old age pension of €200 in the lifetime of the Government and that commitment will be met. The increase of €10 per week is well above inflation. Taken in conjunction with the other increases, it is a definitive example of the Government's commitment to the less well-off and more vulnerable in society.
The fact that over 41,000 taxpayers will pay no tax next year as a result of the financial considerations in this budget is a further example of our commitment. This Minister and Government are determined that there will be social equality in Ireland and the contents of this year's budget prove this point.
The Minister has made the important decision to implement the next phase of decentralisation. When the spatial strategy was first announced, people welcomed that, at long last, something was being done to counteract the sprawl of Dublin. Gateways were identified as the main focus of growth but it was also indicated that each gateway would have a number of hubs, smaller centres of growth, that would help the area around the gateway to thrive. Real fears were expressed by people in rural areas that each gateway would swamp the locality and mini-Dublins, with all the attendant problems, would be created. I have attended many meetings organised by rural communities where such fears were articulated. The decision by the Minister to implement the spatial strategy is welcome, but I congratulate him on his boldness in locating whole Departments away from Dublin.
Eight Departments will be relocated in this way and it is to the hubs, not the gateways, that they are being moved. The only gateway that will house a relocated Department is Mullingar, which has special considerations of its own although it shares its gateway status with Athlone and Tullamore. The decision to locate Departments in the regions is timely, but the decision to locate them in smaller towns is particularly welcome.
As a Deputy from the west, the relocation of the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs to Knock is good news and gives the lie to those who have argued that this Government is ignoring the west. Recently, some Members have attempted to make political capital out of the fact that the west has not got its fair share but since the decentralisation moves were announced yesterday, the same Members are shouting that the gateways have been ignored.
We will need a couple of hundred million euro.
That is the leopard changing his spots. I warmly welcome the news that my home town, Sligo, has had an extra 100 jobs relocated to the Department of Social and Family Affairs. There was a real fear some months ago that some of the jobs in the Department were to be transferred or lost but, not only has this not happened, an extra 100 jobs will be brought there, reinforcing the town's importance as a gateway.
I hope it happens in the Deputy's lifetime.
The additional 250 jobs for Carrick-on-Shannon, a hub, are also good news and clearly indicate the Government's commitment to the balanced development of the north-west.
Ireland has been transformed in recent years and we are now a country where high value jobs are the norm. In order to maintain our competitive edge, it is essential that we develop our research and development capacity. Multinational companies will go to where costs are cheapest. Our future is based on creating an environment where our well educated young people have the opportunity to get interesting and well paid jobs and, hence, it is important to attract overseas companies that are willing to locate their research and development divisions in Ireland and to encourage Irish companies to strengthen their research and development divisions. We have the workforce capable of research and development at the highest level. Allowing companies to offset 20% of their expenditure on research and development against corporation tax is a welcome development and will ensure our young, well educated workforce jobs in Ireland.
This budget will ensure that the country continues its growth and development in the coming years while allowing social justice and dignity to the most vulnerable in society. I commend the budget to the House.
I welcome the opportunity to speak on the budget. It is a progressive budget that is of particular importance to rural areas. The Minister made an innovative decision in deciding to decentralise Government Departments on a huge scale. I am bemused by people who talk about the need for rural development and lament the depopulation of rural Ireland, particularly the west, but who, when a positive decision is made to reverse that trend, immediately cast doubt on it. I am surprised that Deputy Cowley who has talked about rural development and the difficulties that the west faces would be sceptical of a decentralisation programme that has the potential to change the economic dynamics of the country. I am particularly glad that my home county of Cavan will have the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources with 425 jobs in Cavan town.
That will enhance the Cavan coastline.
The communications section does not need a coastline.
Just a telephone.
Natural resources are not confined to a coastline so we are very glad to house the Department in Cavan. As the Deputies no doubt know, we have the best inland fisheries resources in the country, North and South. I look forward to welcoming those public servants to our county over the next few years.
Deputy Smith should not hold his breath while waiting for them.
Likewise, I am glad that 110 public servants will be transferred to County Monaghan and like other Deputies I will work to ensure that Monaghan gets a greater share of personnel over the next few years.
Deputies
Hear, hear.
The decentralisation programme is very important. Those of us who have been privileged to be Members of this House for some time have listened to people on all sides of the House, both party members and Independent Deputies, speak ad infinitum about the serious imbalance in economic development. We are all well aware of the need to redress this imbalance which tilts to the east coast with its greater population and economic development, and its congestion problems. We read in the newspapers and hear on the broadcast media self-appointed commentators talk about the difficulties facing people commuting from Wexford, Carlow, Westmeath, Longford, Laois, Cavan, Louth and so on. Those commentators were first out of the traps yesterday evening and this morning casting doubts on the wisdom of such a large-scale decentralisation programme. They are talking out of both sides of their mouths. Their attitude is so begrudging that when a Government makes a positive decision to go for a major change in economic policy they can respond only with negatives.
That is right.
I recall working in the 1980s as a civil servant with the then Minister for Tourism and Transport, John Wilson, who initiated the restoration of the Ballyconnell-Ballinamore Canal, the first real cross-Border project since the late 19th century. When we started that project we received only criticism to the effect that it could not be done because it was in Fermanagh, Cavan and Leitrim, because of its cross-Border context, the engineering difficulties or that the funding would never be available. The then Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, and the then Minister for Tourism and Transport said they were determined to bring that flagship project to fruition which they did within two years. A total of £30 million was invested in restoring a waterway then known as the Ballyconnell-Ballinamore Canal, now known as the Erne-Shannon Waterway, which is one of the success stories of today's tourism product. The begrudgers outside and in this House will have egg on their faces again because the decentralisation programme will be successful.
I hope so.
It will contribute greatly to the economic development of the whole country. The begrudgers should be positive for a change and look at the advantages that will come from that decentralisation programme. We have listened for far too long to different industrial promotion agencies and Departments tell us that it is not possible to bring anything out of the capital city. It is possible. Two major international firms have headquarters in my county, the Quinn Group in Derrylin, County Fermanagh, and Ballyconnell employs 3,000 people, and the Kingspan Group, an international company, is based in Kingscourt, County Cavan. These companies are big players in the international arena and their headquarters are in provincial Ireland. Running Departments from the provinces will be equally successful.
I welcome this budget, especially the social welfare increases which amount to €630 million in a full year. They show the Government's commitment to looking after those who are less well-off and rely on social welfare. I especially welcome the additional €25 million allocation to assist people with disabilities, reflecting the Government's commitment to people with disabilities. The additional €30 million for school buildings is very necessary because many schools need new buildings and extensions.
They are falling down.
I hope that schools on the list in east Galway will benefit from this allocation. I also welcome the tax exemption increase on limits for leased farmland and a new rural social scheme for farmers with a herd number who are on farm assist or UA. I congratulate the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív, on creating this new scheme which provides very valuable extra income for 2,500 low-paid farmers. We have heard a great deal about the cutbacks in numbers on CE schemes but this new rural social scheme will free up spaces on the CE schemes for other applicants. I compliment this Government and the Minister for Finance on announcing this major and very welcome programme of decentralisation covering over 10,000 jobs, in 53 centres in 25 counties, 160 of those jobs will go to east Galway.
The decision to locate 19 National Roads Authority and 20 Railway Safety Commission jobs in Ballinasloe, and 40 road haulage and ten National Safety Council jobs in Loughrea, is a great vote of confidence in both towns. Those being relocated can be assured of a very warm welcome when they move. The provision of 160 new jobs will give a significant economic boost not only to Ballinasloe and Loughrea, but to regions generally and will maintain and create additional jobs in local enterprises. People questioned the Government's commitment to the national spatial strategy but they have got their answer today and now the private sector must follow suit and reduce its dependence on Dublin. Only then will we have real balanced regional development.
The Government's continued commitment to investing in infrastructure will enhance the attraction of provincial towns for significant investment. Ballinasloe has been hit hard in recent years with the closure of AT Cross and Square D but it will be a lovely place to live because a new leisure centre opened there a few weeks ago and it has a new secondary school and marina. This is a first for Ballinasloe and it will attract more people and restore confidence to a town that is quite dead. We have been looking for this move for some time.
There has been a worldwide recession in recent years but we have had a very good Government and Minister for Finance who has brought us through from bad times to good times with very little suffering. I congratulate him on this. He has returned us to a position where unemployment will be down, inflation is down by 2.5%, gross spending is just under 7.5% and Exchequer borrowing is €2.8 billion. This is a Government worthy of admiration.
I wish to share time Deputies Twomey and Gogarty.
Acting Chairman (Mr. O'Shea):Is that agreed? Agreed.
Before addressing some of the specifics of this budget, I would like to echo what has been said by my party colleagues and others regarding the lack of real difference it will make to the tens of thousands of people who are finding it difficult to make ends meet. That situation will not be improved as a result of what we heard in the House yesterday. I acknowledge the marginal changes introduced, but they will not effect much improvement in the circumstances of the people currently struggling in my constituency.
Regarding my own area of interest, agriculture and rural development, there were some positive developments. Sinn Féin welcomes the commitment to further decentralise Departments and believes this should be further extended. Others have claimed that the move will undermine the national spatial strategy but I know from my own region that the strategy promises to deliver very little in terms of real decentralisation of jobs or public services. It all looks very well on paper but delivery is not occurring. I only hope that the decentralisation measure announced in the budget will have real substance and will be implemented as quickly as possible.
Sinn Féin has long advocated radical decentralisation, and a genuine commitment to this would help to address many of the problems that afflict rural Ireland. However, the manner in which this measure was announced and the way it is being used does not give great cause for hope. It is a disgrace that Tralee, for example, the capital town of Kerry, which was designated a hub town in the spatial strategy, is not included in the locations where the decentralised Department offices will be placed. More than 25,000 people live in Tralee. The town has a technology park and a technological institute, is located within seven miles of an airport and has had a massive improvement to its road infrastructure, yet it was excluded or overlooked.
On farming, I welcome the increase in the tax relief on leases and the lowering of the qualifying age to 40. More needs to be done to encourage the entrance of trained young farmers to the industry. The recently published compendium on Irish agriculture proved that there has been almost no change in the age structure of Irish farming over the past decade. In 1993, just 35% of farmers were under the age of 45, and shamefully that remains the case.
Nothing has been done to reverse the cuts in the budget available to Teagasc, and this situation will continue to have a detrimental effect on the levels of research and training available to farmers. Not only will it have local effects where centres like Ballinamore have been shut down, but it will also have massive implications for the ability of Irish agriculture to adapt to a radically changing European and world environment. This is particularly relevant to the current reform of the Common Agricultural Policy and to the changes to production that will follow on the introduction of decoupling.
It is no use advising farmers that they can take advantage of the reform to move into different forms of production and land use if the expertise is not available to show the different systems that will be of most value to the relevant farmers. The great shame of cutting back on Teagasc is that it will lead to a brain drain from agriculture and many highly educated people will be lost to the future of the industry. As a result of the cut in the budget for Teagasc last year, Teagasc had to sell State assets in order to maintain its service. That situation has not been redressed this year and the result could be the abolition of Teagasc as an advisory body to the Irish farming community.
If the reform is to work it will be necessary to establish the kind of programmes that will help farmers adapt to the changes. It is not good enough to hope this will be catered for under EU programmes like the farm advisory service that is part of the reform package. It is the responsibility of the Department of Agriculture and Food to ensure this is done and that it takes account of specific Irish strengths and weaknesses.
A new strategy is required that will allow farmers to take advantage of decoupling and prepare rural communities in general for the future. The rural social scheme announced in the budget and the funding made available for it will be inadequate to fulfil that task. It will not even replace the number of community employment schemes lost to rural communities and rural communities will suffer as much as everyone else from the consequences of the failure to maintain adequate public services.
One accusation that is regularly thrown at anyone who advocates radical alternatives to current economic policies is that they do not present any other coherent means of financing a different approach. I do not accept that there are no alternatives, nor that the revenue to finance them could not be found. The Sinn Féin pre-budget submission details some of these. I will cite one particular example in an area that has once again come under some scrutiny in recent weeks, namely the control and taxation regime that governs our natural resources, or to be more specific, the lack of control and taxation over our oil and gas reserves. If the State exercised its proper role on behalf of the people in that sector, oil and gas revenue could play a major part in financing future progressive developments. We have heard the Minister for Finance explain why even minimal changes to the taxation regime such as broadening the 20% tax band to exclude more of the lower paid was not possible at present. Yet his party has proven itself in the past to be more than capable of introducing tax benefits for others, which have been far more radical and costly in terms of lost revenue.
The terms governing the exploitation of our natural resources – exploitation is indeed how it should be described – are a good case in point. It has long been known that there is massive potential in the oil and gas that lies beneath Irish waters. When that first became a major issue in the mid-1970s, Sinn Féin was one of those groups which argued that the reserves ought to be taken under State control in the interests of the Irish people as a whole. I worked on an oil rig off the Irish coast and was present at a major oil discovery which was tapped and left for a future date. It was considered one of the major finds on the Porcupine Bank at the time and remains there to this day. Instead of the State proactively seeking to develop what was there, and investing the necessary finance and skills, it was content to auction the options off to multi national corporations. While initially there may have been some attempt to maintain the public interest, gradually over the years the terms and conditions have been further eroded to the extent that we now have almost no real stake in what lies off our shores.
Major changes were introduced to the benefit of the corporations. In 1987, the then Minister for energy, Ray Burke, decided to do away with royalties. In 1992, the then Minister for Finance and current Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, reduced the tax on oil finds to 25%, the lowest in the world. The companies can write even that off. Frontier licences were also introduced in 1992 which allow the oil companies to sit on areas of likely reserves for up to 20 years. If one considers the discoveries made in 1979, the oil companies can sit on them for another seven years. Ever since, when these terms have been challenged, successive Ministers have claimed they are necessary to encourage the development of the oil and gas sector. However, the opposite has happened as the number of exploratory drills declined after 1987.
Right up to the present, when I have asked questions regarding these terms and the likely benefits to accrue from recent finds such as that at the Dooish Well off Donegal, I am told the same thing. Where is the proof that all these great benefits, such as those referred to in this House by the Taoiseach two weeks ago, will come on stream? Does the State even know what is there or what the exploration companies know lies in the sectors under their control? It has been admitted that the State has no means of independently verifying what Shell or the other multinational oil companies tell it.
This is important, because when the Corrib field was discovered in 1996, Irish rig workers knew that the find was massive. This was confirmed by a report by Wood Mackenzie which claimed that the field could contain up to seven trillion cubic feet of gas. At current prices this is worth €21 billion. If we develop our resources and exploit them for the benefit of the people, we will go a long way towards helping those who are most in need in our community and who were ignored in this and previous budgets.
One wonders what the many Deputies who have spoken in this debate found to say about the budget. While Members on the Government side celebrated the budget last night, many on this side hope they were more circumspect in their support of it when they awoke in the cold light of dawn this morning. As Government Deputies were saying their prayers before they jumped into their nice warm beds last night, did they think of the beneficiaries of community employment schemes who, they hope, will have forgotten that they voted three times against extending the schemes? That is difficult to credit, considering what we heard last week.
It is now 24 hours since the Minister for Finance made his Budget Statement. With the exception of decentralisation, the budget was a mere housekeeping exercise with little thought for taxpayers.
The poor, as usual, fared worst. The social welfare increases leave them no better off. Even Members on the Government side will admit that. Once indirect taxes and other costs are factored into the equation, the poor are slightly worse off. As usual, middle Ireland will pay the bulk of the price of keeping the country on the straight and narrow. Tax relief was hardly affected and building can continue at the same profitable level. The budget was a straightforward housekeeping exercise which contributed nothing.
The reason for our low tax and low spend economy is, we are told, that it is what the voters want. We have such diabolical levels of public services because we do not bring in the necessary revenue. Is there any hope of making improvements in the next few years? I believe there is. We must scrutinise more carefully how we spend the €35 billion which the Government plans to spend next year.
Some €10 billion will be spent on the health services but where will that money go? We never seem to ask serious questions about health spending. The Minister for Health and Children listed the many improvements in the health service for which we are expected to give him credit. He referred to the number of patients being treated for cancer. This is fine if one simply looks at the number being treated, but do we ever compare our treatment levels with international norms? Only 20% of cancer patients receive radiotherapy and the number of Irish people who receive chemotherapy is far below the European average. Let us forget about comparing 1996 with 2003. Let us look at what one could expect if one lived in another EU country and compare that with Ireland. Why are we so far behind other countries? The Minister says we are spending the same amount of money as other EU countries. We are not. The Minister quotes selectively. Between €1.5 billion and €2 billion of the health budget is a social welfare budget, but this is rarely commented upon.
The Hanly report has, thankfully, been conclusively discarded and thrown in the bin, but many influential people and people in Government hold on to the ideas and recommendations of the Hanly report.
The Deputy might like to think it has been thrown in the bin. We are looking forward to it in Letterkenny.
Does Deputy Keaveney know anything about the general practice service and the problems of primary care? We have a manpower crisis in general practice. Are there any zones in her constituency which have poor response times for ambulances? These are important factors when local accident and emergency departments are being closed down.
Our health board is doing a good job. It is putting in emergency response vehicles.
Deputy Keaveney should listen to a man who has worked on the ground. Dr. Twomey knows the health service.
I am talking about my constituency.
If your constituency is so well served that there is no problem with ambulance response times, you should hold it up as a model for the rest of the country. If the accident and emergency and maternity services in my constituency closed down, our patients would be disadvantaged greatly. I am not using scare tactics. Neither the Government nor the writers of the report have even acknowledged this fact. I am glad you believe so strongly in the report, Deputy Keaveney. I wonder how many others do.
Acting Chairman
The Deputy must address his remarks to the Chair.
The Chair is not to blame for the state of the health service.
The health service is badly managed and the Government's health policy is poor and incoherent. We must address this issue.
Benchmarking is not simply a public service pay rise but is related to productivity. The measure will cost €1 billion, not merely this year but every year. Moves have been made to paint benchmarking as some sort of pay rise and the Government seems to have little enthusiasm for the implementation of the productivity issues related to it. An extra €1 billion per year could have been well spent in increasing the number of medical cards. This is not a glamorous issue, but for someone trying to get a medical card, it is a serious one. If one factors out the over-70s deal, which was not means-tested, was a vote buying exercise and contravenes medical ethics, approximately one person in four has a medical card. A medical card is considerably more useful than a social welfare increase of €5 or €6 per week. Every Deputy should face up to this important issue. At the height of the Celtic tiger era, 35% of people had medical cards and the figure has declined to just more than 25%.
The money could equally have been spent on hospitals or schools. It is nice to learn that an extra €30 million will be spent on schools and on disability issues. However, benchmarking will cost €1 billion, so we should insist that it is made to work.
Contrary to what might be happening in the north-west, the rest of the country does not have a world class health service. We will never have one if the situation continues as it is. The best we can hope for is to get the basics right.
Regardless of the fine talk about what we can expect in future, our health policy formulators would learn more from Havana than from Boston because we will never spend the money on our health service. It is not just infrastructure that needs a coherent, strategic and cost-effective approach to spending. This approach should be adopted in every Department because money is being wasted in all public services.
The only interesting aspect of the budget was the Minister's announcement of decentralisation measures. Many speakers have said they are looking forward to seeing 50, 100 or 150 civil servants in their constituencies. Even some who made negative comments on the measure claimed to have been calling for it for many years. We must be realistic about the proposal. How many people believe that 10,000 civil servants will pack their bags and move out of Dublin within three years? Are they to be marched onto the parade yard of Dublin Castle and asked, "Hands up for Wexford" or "Hands up for Killarney"?
There will be a rush for many places.
Or Donegal?
The Joint Committee on Finance and the Public Service made inquiries about problems regarding decentralisation and it had little response. Many people resent the proposal and have no interest in leaving Dublin. Many officials at middle and higher grades have established themselves in Dublin, their families go to school in Dublin, they have integrated into their neighbourhoods and have no interest in decentralisation. We must be realistic and honest about this plan. I would be surprised to see it implemented in three years, although I would love to see that happen.
I wish to give the House a brief traffic report. I travelled to my home and back to the House this evening. The traffic is gridlocked. There is late night shopping on Thursday nights in Dublin and everyone is going into town because it is nearly Christmas. The traffic is back to back and no one is going anywhere.
I wish to concentrate on the transport and traffic issue in my contribution. I believe that on foot of this budget nothing will be done to solve that problem and to make our city liveable for its citizens and for the economy.
It is incredible to examine the five year capital programme which has been much trumpeted by the Government. Our solution to the traffic problem is to spend four times the amount on roads that is being spent on public transport. Most people will suggest investment in public transport as a solution to the problem of gridlock. The Dublin Chamber of Commerce expressed that view to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and IBEC and the AA are of the same view. Even the Government will admit it. The stark figures over five years of four to one in favour of roads rather than public transport mean that this Government will not fund the metro, which is a vital facility for the constituency I share with the Minister of State, Deputy Kitt. The roads bring traffic to Dublin very quickly but the problem begins when the traffic leaves the motorway and hits the villages of Templeogue, Terenure, Windy Arbour or Stillorgan. Gridlock is guaranteed and the budget does nothing about that problem.
The national spatial strategy was trumpeted by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, but it will not work if there is no proper connection between the hubs and gateways he mentioned. The western rail line will not be funded through this capital programme. Cork desperately needs suburban rail services to make it work as an alternative city to Dublin where investment can be directed.
I wonder if I am on a different planet from the Government. Perhaps I am completely mistaken about what is happening. It could be that the UN reports I have been reading for the past 15 years, which state that a massive environmental problem is facing us, are all wrong. Perhaps the scientists who run the climate change programme are all wrong. It could be that the Government and President George Bush are correct and it will be no problem to burn oil forever and a day. I do not think we are wrong. This is the biggest issue facing us in the 21st century. Until we stop talking about it and start addressing it through budgets, we will never achieve change. We will be the laggards of Europe. Maybe the German and British Governments' policies for the reduction of CO2 emissions by 60% are wrong and we do not have a care in the world because our CO2 emissions have increased by 30% beyond what they should be. Is the Government aware of this issue? If its climate change strategy has any meaning, how can it present a budget which gives four times the amount of money to new roads than it does to public transport? It is incredible.
The Minister of State may suggest that financing for the metro may be arranged through private financing under a public private partnership. We will pay a high cost in the process, but why should we choose that method? The city of Paris has a public transport system that works. The State expects one third of the revenue from the metro to cover one third of the costs while the State provides the rest in conjunction with local authorities and with business. This Government has an ideological problem with investing in public transport. The budget demonstrates this in the figures for the next five years and it is a disgrace. This city will be gridlocked and our constituency will be gridlocked with traffic unless the problem is addressed. The Luas extensions, the metro and the other capital projects are not provided for in this five year plan. This is a Government with no vision; it is merely treading water. It thinks everything is going fine and that this is a great little country. The people who are sitting in the traffic gridlock tonight probably do not agree.
I will take up the theme my colleague mentioned. I have no doubt that when the Minister, Deputy McCreevy, first became Minister for Finance he probably had ambitions to be a reforming Minister. He may have been extremely right-wing but he was someone who saw himself as a person who would stand up to vested interests and for what he believed in. I recall on the occasions of his first and second budgets that he spoke about the introduction of eco-taxes and the taxation of benefit-in-kind. He added humorously that his civil servants did not share his enthusiasm for the taxation of benefit-in-kind and that raised a laugh at the time.
Years later we are still waiting for attacks on benefit-in-kind. The free city centre parking places for civil servants and politicians are still in use. The taxation of benefit-in-kind never happened and is unlikely to happen during the lifetime of the Government. Perhaps now that all these civil servants are moving down the country—
They are moving up the country to the Deputy's homeland.
Many of them are moving down the country, enough to free up many of the parking spaces. It might mean that the pressure would be less on the Minister and he could perhaps introduce a tax on benefit-in-kind. However, I have a feeling that this will remain an unfulfilled promise.
It is like the promise to reinstate Leinster Lawn. The carpark was supposed to be temporary. An engineer told me that the foundations did not seem too temporary, in his view. I have been proven right in my doubts. The Leinster Lawn carpark is an example of the cowardice and deep cynicism of the Government. It is a metaphor for this budget. This is not a decentralisation budget, as it has been portrayed in the media and spun wonderfully by the party opposite, but what I term a carpark budget. Far from taxing carparking, the Government has incentivised carparks. As Deputy Eamon Ryan said, our cities are choking with cars, pollution is increasing, the rail service is on its knees and the Government builds and wants to build more carparks. That is a vision.
It is a carpark budget because, like a carpark, it is cold, unimaginative and soulless. As Joni Mitchell once sang many years ago, "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot". This is a short-sighted Government which paradoxically has its eyes firmly on electoral success. It has decided that if it creates the right conditions for their paymasters, it can continue to buy elections. This is why, in its own calculated way, it widens the gap between rich and poor. The money squandered in other areas demonstrates its lack of vision, as Deputy Eamon Ryan said.
This morning in the House the Minister for Social and Family Affairs treated the Opposition to the same sort of contempt she reserves for ordinary people who have suffered so much as a result of her Department's cutbacks. Whether one uses the calculation of GDP or GNP, Ireland has the lowest social expenditure in Europe. It also has the lowest tax take in Europe. If the tax take was slightly higher, poverty could be eliminated, we could have proper public transport and proper education.
The Taoiseach said yesterday that he was embarrassed to speak about the tribunals to a high flyer in business circles. He said Ireland was only in the ha'penny place when it came to corruption. We are only in the ha'penny place when it comes to public services. I suggest the Government gets its act together. It cannot buy its way out of this situation. The electorate will see what it is doing. The Government can be cute enough up to the election, but eventually things will catch up with it. I hope the electorate will see through the Government because the Green Party certainly has done so.
I wish to share my time with Deputies McGuinness and Mulcahy.
Is that agreed? Agreed.
This is the eighth budget debate I have participated in since being elected to the House. I am disappointed by the personal attacks that have been made on some Ministers in the course of the debate. It is a sad day when fellow politicians go beyond political point scoring to indulge in such attacks. That should be taken into account because we all have feelings and try to do our jobs to the best of our ability. It is acceptable to criticise people from a political point of view but not to go beyond that.
Having sat on the Opposition benches, I know how much fun it can be to tackle the Government on all the matters that were not covered in a budget. I could talk for three days about what I would like to see happen as a result of the budget, but I only have ten minutes. It is a question of balancing reality with aspiration but Opposition Deputies want all the problems in the health service to be solved, including those of the hospitals, in addition to providing medical cards and non-means tested care for everybody. They also want the problems of the education system solved, with all the primary and secondary schools rebuilt or refurbished, and all the third level institutions advanced to provide the best education ever. I could add roads to that list with many other things. While we all agree with these ideas, we must strike a balance between aspiration and reality. This also arises with regard to car parks which are very handy for shopping. Perhaps we should not have as many cars, but we need somewhere to park them.
Much play was made by the Opposition in yesterday's debate about the 20 cent a day increase in child benefit. However, I have been in the House long enough to have seen the 25p per week or £1 per month budget increase in child benefit. We all agree that the world should be a better place but we must deal with the money that is available and examine how best it can be dispersed.
Some people say that decentralisation is not a budgetary matter and should not have been included. I do not know why it came as a surprise, however, because we have been discussing it for years. The Minister said he could not move too fast because he had to consult all those involved but as soon as it was discussed, 10,000 civil servants appeared to be interested in the idea. I received phone calls in my constituency from people in Dublin who wanted to move home to Donegal. They wanted to know when decentralisation would happen. I am hopeful that the 120 decentralised jobs in the Department of Social and Family Affairs, which have been earmarked for Buncrana, will be among the first to be filled. That is a boost the constituency requires.
We have had a terrible time with job losses in the textile sector. Children left school early to work in the industry which later collapsed. It does not really matter whether the 120 new jobs in Buncrana will be filled by people living locally or by those coming back to live in the county; the reality is that within a generation people on the Inishowen peninsula and in the wider county of Donegal will be able to tell their sons or daughters that they have good job prospects for the future.
The Minister has examined the idea of clustering, including Buncrana, Letterkenny, Donegal town and Gweedore. There will also be promotional opportunities arising from these jobs. If we were isolated from everywhere else people would not come to the county, but they will travel there now. People described on the radio today how they had moved out of Dublin to various locations. Decentralisation has been a success story and people confirm that it can and does work. People on the 6 o'clock news tonight said they would be delighted to see people coming into their areas as a result of decentralisation, and it will be a success. I thank the Minister for organising the decentralisation process because we are talking about tackling poverty, while trying to improve everybody's lifestyle. It might not happen next year but this plan will ensure that my area will benefit with other parts of the country. A rising tide will lift all boats and decentralisation will be an important catalyst in this regard.
People have been arguing about the changes in the CE scheme. I welcome the new scheme introduced by the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Ó Cuív, which recognises small farmers who are in receipt of social assistance. The scheme is designed to help people who are solely employed in farming and keep them in their localities. Such people might otherwise have tried unsuccessfully to join CE schemes. I remember the days when people were begging to get off CE schemes and later they were begging to get on them. This year the plan is much more practical because there is no fixed time limit, it provides direct services for the community and is for anyone with a herd number who is in receipt of farm assistance, unemployment assistance, disability assistance or unemployment benefit. They will automatically be offered a place, which will free up community employment schemes for those who are supposed to be using them to become more employable.
Multi-annual budgets are very important. As politicians we often hear announcements about so much money being made available towards the end of the year that must be spent in the next fortnight. As a result, not all the money is used as constructively as it could be. The 10% roll-over is important because it means money for emergencies that remains unspent at this time of year should not be wasted. While it is not all wasted now, it is not used as constructively as possible. The majority of that money should be given out at the start of the year.
People have asked me whether tax relief for films will be of any use to Donegal and I believe it can be because Ireland is now among the top six locations for film making in the world. As Chairperson of the Committee on Arts, Sport, Tourism, Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, I realise that we needed this tax break to keep going. Film Screen Ireland made a presentation to my committee and stated that the loss to the Revenue of the tax break was compensated for threefold by the extra employment and expenditure generated where filming was taking place. Now that the tax relief for films has been extended, I hope that Donegal and other areas will get a chance to attract such cinematographic projects. The statistics relating to income generated by film making in local areas are staggering.
Donegal County Council will welcome the €30 million that has been made available for the local government fund. It will provide much needed assistance. In addition, the €30 million for the school building programme must also be welcomed because issues have arisen, particularly within the primary school sector. There are a number of schools in my area that require such action and in this context I have spoken to the Minister about the money that is available. I am aware that issues still have to be dealt with concerning secondary schools.
The respite care grant recognises the importance of a sector that was first taken account of by the Minister, Deputy Dermot Ahern. It has increased constantly in a realistic fashion, by €100 at a time or more.
People have complained that there is nothing in the budget for the less well off but The Irish Times accepted that the budget has helped the lowest earners. They are not trotting out the usual phrase that we are only interested in the well off people. The fact that the national minimum wage is rising to €7 proves that there is a commitment on the Government's part to ensuring that those in lower wage categories are better looked after than they have been in the past.
I welcome the support for business research and development with the business expansion scheme, which is having an impact in County Donegal. We do not have enough businesses in the county and we want to see more locating there. Over the years, my constituency has suffered from isolation as well as a lack of infrastructure to which I have often referred. Others have criticised the budget for not solving such problems with a magic wand, but we must be realistic.
I was glad to hear people referring to the budget as "McCreevy's book". The first year he introduced a budget, the Minister announced it was the first of five chapters of the first volume of a book. People laughed at that idea but they laughed less and less as the years went on. This budget is the second chapter of his second book. Some people say it is a nice, straightforward housekeeping budget, and there is a lot to be said for that. Let us solve matters as we get the resources to do so. I commend the Minister, Deputy McCreevy, on bringing our economy back on line. I hope that those who might not have gained as much as they wanted this year will gain under the next chapter of volume 2.
What is another year?
I want to reflect on some of the issues raised by the Opposition Members in the context of decentralisation. They termed it a decentralising budget but the fact is that an extensive budget was laid before the House and decentralisation is the issue that caught people's imaginations. It certainly caught the Opposition Members unaware—
It caught the Members opposite unaware also.
—and perhaps that is the cause of their ire.
What about the 40 flounderers who marched up and down the road outside?
Please allow Deputy McGuinness to speak without interruption.
The fact that it will work and is supported by investment is probably causing the Opposition further ire, but it is not just decentralisation. The regions have won as a result of this budget. For my area, decentralisation means an additional 215 people coming to live in Kilkenny and 250 coming to live in Carlow. If it was an industry by another name or an outside investor, the Opposition and everyone in this House would be welcoming what has happened.
It is not 250 extra jobs. The jobs are being moved around.
A fundamental change is taking place in the country but Deputy Durkan has just expressed the narrow view of Fine Gael.
What about the view of the Minister of State, Deputy Fahey, who marched up and down the road?
Deputy Durkan, allow the Deputy to continue without interruption.
When jobs are moved to the country, a new importance is given to the region. The people who live there are given a direct input to Government, an opportunity to engage with senior officials and a role to play within the region in respect of the particular Department.
Will they come?
It took three years to review this measure and ensure it would happen. The other positive aspect is that the Minister of State, Deputy Parlon, indicated that he spends €100 million per year on leased property in Dublin but if we can make any savings on that by relocation, that is what we should do. This measure will work out and it will be brought forward shortly.
I understand Ministers are anxiously pursuing it and asking that it would happen sooner rather than later. Chambers of commerce throughout the country want to know when it will happen because they want to play their role.
Before the local elections is what they are saying.
I say to Deputy Durkan that it was the chambers of commerce throughout the country which lobbied the Minister on this issue. Kilkenny Chamber of Commerce and Industry did that and its members were on local radio today praising the decision—
What else would they be doing?
—that has been made because it shows vision and commitment not just to Dublin, but to the rest of the country. It should be widely welcomed because the impact it will have on society and local economies will be measured by the growth in our regions, which is essential.
The Minister of State, Deputy Fahey, was disappointed.
Another aspect that is not understood by the Opposition is that in terms of the spatial strategy, this measure will add value to the areas designated hubs or gateways. It shows Government commitment and that we will follow through on those designations with the tangible acts of relocating people to various locations. That is what we are doing and if the Deputies opposite believe that is wrong, their political vision is back in the dark ages.
It is not only my vision. The Minister of State, Deputy Fahey, led the march up to Merrion Street. He said the Government had gone astray.
Deputy Durkan, allow Deputy McGuinness to continue without interruption.
This measure is about the future and I welcome it. In Kilkenny 215 people—
(Interruptions).
Deputy McGuinness, without interruption. Deputy McGuinness, if you address your remarks through the Chair you might not provoke interruptions.
They will need houses to live in and cars to drive. This is a good economic package for the country. The Opposition members were caught by surprise and that is what is wrong with them.
This measure adds to our investment in information technology. Broadband cabling is being rolled out in every region. That will make it possible to work away from home and easier to work from the regions—
In some cases.
—and we must capitalise on that aspect. This measure is part of that overall plan and the vision expressed by the Government through the Minister, Deputy McCreevy.
Bring it to Punchestown. That is the place for it.
The only message I would send to the implementation group is that it should move this measure on, bring it to the regions as quickly as possible and make whatever decisions have to be made on it quickly so that we can see changes taking place on the ground.
I welcome the positive views expressed tonight on various news programmes by people working in Dublin who are anxious to see this programme implemented. They said they were willing to participate and they wanted to move.
It has to be done before the local elections.
As a result of this measure we can ask corporate Ireland to examine its position and begin to relocate their headquarters so that we get a fair balance of Government and corporations throughout the regions.
What are the unions saying about it?
In that way everyone will enjoy the economic benefits and see all their boats lifted. That is the problem the Opposition have with this measure. They realise this is a positive move—
We seldom see a positive move from this Government.
—and they are afraid of the political consequences because they would not have the guts to do it.
We will see.
Allow Deputy McGuinness to continue without interruption.
On the question of connecting the regions and the current transport policy, I listened to the Green Party Members complain about gridlock in Dublin. Traffic problems are being experienced throughout the country, particularly in Dublin, but listening to their contributions one would think nothing was happening in Dublin. There is so much road construction throughout the country and in Dublin that it is becoming part of the problem.
And Luas.
And Luas, and those works cannot be carried out without some form of disruption. We have to minimise that disruption.
Two levels.
It is being built, however. There is a transport policy and spending is taking place.
What about the Red Cow roundabout?
Luas on stilts and the squeegee tunnel.
Three times what it was supposed to cost.
It is happening throughout the country but the Deputies opposite cannot stomach it politically.
Approximately €5.6 billion will be spent in terms of capital infrastructure next year. That is to be welcomed and it will have a major impact on what is happening throughout the country. I encourage the Minister to re-examine the gateways and the hubs and the connectivity between the regions and from the capital to the regions. Projects such as the extension of the ring road in Kilkenny, and a small investment in that scheme next year, would have a positive impact on development in terms of the economy of Kilkenny. That needs to be examined.
Who does the Deputy blame for that?
I compliment Iarnród Éireann on the roll-out of its extra train facilities in Kilkenny and I encourage it to continue its major spend on the tracks throughout the country. That will encourage more decentralisation to happen more quickly and it will give people the confidence to move.
I want to raise another area of concern. In every economy the Government can pump money into the three main areas of health, education and social welfare – I understand it is €10 billion in each – but we need to examine the outturns in that regard. Every week the Committee of Public Accounts hears about some fault or other in the way money is spent. I would like the Minister to take some action in this area to ensure that each Department has some form of monitoring group which examines the way money is spent so that we get value for money and a good deal for the taxpayer. I often think taxes are collected by the hard-core and spent by the soft-centred. That is what we have to consider. We have to ensure a hard edge to our spend, take the example of what is happening each week in the Committee of Public Accounts and factor it into the way money is spent in each Department.
We should also apply the same hard core attitude to spending the money as we do to collecting it. We should show the same diligence in that regard and ensure the taxpayer gets the best possible deal in terms of the roads infrastructure, the roll-out of broadband or any other area in the remit of the Departments. There are too many examples of overspends on the various roads programmes and technology projects being undertaken. The smallest road in my own constituency was to cost €15 million but it ended up costing €30 million.
Who does the Deputy blame for that?
There is a need for Departments to ensure we get value for money. If any Department proves its worth and if it saves money on the infrastructure being provided, it should be allowed to re-spend that money on front line public service. In that way we will get value for money. The benchmarking process often talked about on the Opposition benches needs to be monitored. I recommend the budget to the House.
Debate adjourned.