Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 20 Jul 2016

Vol. 919 No. 1

Leaders' Questions

Deputy Micheál Martin

We all remember the infamous photograph of Deputy Ruairí Quinn outside Trinity College Dublin in advance of the 2011 general election, when he signed a big banner and the students' petition, saying he would cut rather than increase student fees. Of course, subsequently, when he took office as Minister for Education and Skills, he blatantly and cynically disregarded that commitment. Ever since then third level funding has been on a cliff. It is in a seriously difficult situation. Pupil-teacher ratios have got progressively worse, going from 16:1 to 20:1. There is little or no capital investment, apart from the Grangegorman campus, in third level education. The central role of third level education in economic development is not reflected in current Government policy and has not been for some time. It is indisputable that over the past 40 years investment in third level education was central to economic and social development, particularly in attracting foreign direct investment and in developing small to medium sized companies and giving young people a chance in life. The great success story of modern Ireland has been the degree to which we have opened up third level education through institutes of technology and universities to far more young people than was the case in the 1950s and 1960s.

The quality of the experience for students is in decline. That is a real worry for those in charge of the universities and for those who have analysed this. There will be more young people going into third level education in years to come. Population growth and the numbers coming through second level all point to far greater numbers attending. The quality of the experience should be good. We have been slipping in some of the world league tables of university rankings and that is a considerable worry.

The report of the expert group on future funding for third level education, the Cassells report, has highlighted much of this and pointed to the urgent need to restore and enhance quality. It has recommended an immediate increase of €120 million per year over the next five years. It recommends spending €5.5 billion over the next five to six years on capital infrastructure in third level education. Students need additional supports. Postgraduate students should be prioritised and their grants restored. I have been saying this for the past three to four years.

Do the Taoiseach and the Government accept the recommendations of the Cassells report? As discussions and negotiations begin about the forthcoming budget, will the Government reflect significantly increased funding of approximately €120 million to third level education?

The Taoiseach

Deputy Martin’s general point is perfectly correct that the attractiveness and reputation of this country for foreign direct investment is built on the energy of young people and the mark they make. That is through the educational system, which is not perfect but which has more than measured up against any of its competitors around the world. Primary, second and third level are all important parts of that jigsaw. From the evidence of my engagements with business abroad, Ireland’s reputation is a very important cornerstone, more so than tax in many respects, for people who want to invest here and work with the young Irish.

The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, has received the Cassells report, which sets out three options. The report will go to the Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills for consideration and discussion. Deputy Martin is well aware that most of the universities raise significant sums of money themselves for their capital programmes, assisted in part by the State. There is always a balance to be achieved between the output from universities and the challenge to provide sufficient money for them. We did not have this capacity for many years. I do not want to predict the outcome of the budget allowances but this report will be considered very carefully because that is in the country’s interests.

The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has signed off in general with Ministers in respect of the budget for 2017 but it is an issue that concerns Government because the future years will in many ways depend on a world that is changing so rapidly and upon Ireland’s flexibility to deal with those challenges and changes. The third level sector has to be at the core of that. The report will go to the committee and the Minister looks forward to hearing the views of the Deputies and parties and their observations on the priorities. The budget will be outlined at sectoral level at the committees and will be presented by the Minister in October.

Deputy Micheál Martin

I am disappointed with the Taoiseach’s reply because it kicks the can down the road by referring the whole report to the Oireachtas committee whose deliberations will not have concluded in advance of the budget and the key estimates’ formation and allocation. There are three options, each of which calls for increased State funding. The third level sector is in financial crisis. The Committee of Public Accounts last year identified some institutes of technology as being in dire financial straits. I do not want to name them here and create further embarrassment for them but they are in trouble. It is a question of priorities and prioritisation. We nailed our colours to the mast on this in our manifesto and have subsequently said there has to be a direct increase in allocation to the third level sector. Otherwise we are storing up big trouble for the country.

I asked the Taoiseach if he accepts the recommendations of the Cassells report. Does the Government accept them? There has been no statement from the Government, the Taoiseach or the Minister for Education and Skills other than that it is being sent to the committee. Does the Government accept the recommendations of the Cassells report and will they be reflected in an increase in the forthcoming budget?

The Taoiseach

The answer to the second question is in so far as possible, given the economic constraints on Ministers in general, the priorities will be reflected in the budget in whatever way they can. The expert report makes clear that doing nothing is not an option. The Deputy would accept that it would not be fair for the Minister to say at this stage that he is nailing his colours to option A, B or C. There are downsides to all the options and they are not without significant challenges. It is only right and proper that, having accepted and received the Cassells report, which has been published, and members of the public and various bodies are sending in their views on it, the Members of this House should have their say because these matters need to be teased out and there are no easy options yet something has to be done. The Deputy knows that if we follow the concept of a student loan scheme the higher postgraduate achievers can add greatly to their earning power.

Deputy Micheál Martin

Park that. I am referring to increased State funding.

An Ceann Comhairle

We do not need any more talk at this stage because time is up.

The Taoiseach

That is a matter for the budget that will be finalised eventually. I recognise the scale of the challenge, as universities have pointed it out over the past number of years. The Minister, Deputy Bruton, is focused on getting a ten year consensus on where we want to be with the education sector which includes a capital programme to provide for the many changes and challenges to come.

Deputy Gerry Adams

Yesterday, the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government released the State's latest homelessness figures. Last month, 6,358 people were living in emergency accommodation, a shocking 2,206 of whom were children. Child homelessness has increased by over 70% in the past 12 months. Children are sleeping night after night in cramped hotels or unsuitable hostels. These figures do not include those who are living in overcrowded housing, sleeping on someone else's floor or sofa or those waiting for emergency accommodation.

Why are these people homeless? It is not an accident or an act of nature. Rather, it is because the Government and Fianna Fáil before it failed to build social housing, tackle spiralling rents and help those in mortgage distress. The Government ignored all the warnings about this pending crisis when Sinn Féin and others brought it to its attention.

Yesterday, the Minister, Deputy Coveney, launched his action plan for housing and homelessness. It has some merit, and Sinn Féin has welcomed its positive elements. Clearly, the Minister is making a genuine effort to tackle the housing crisis, but it is results that count. The Minister, like the Taoiseach, seems restrained by an ideological reliance on the market.

What is not in the plan is as important as what is. Crucially, it fails to address the most urgent aspects of the crisis. It is not ambitious enough and not enough social housing will be built. Gone is the dedicated court to tackle mortgage distress promised in the programme for Government. There are no proposals to tackle spiralling rents. Crucially, it commits a mere €150 million in extra capital spending for social housing next year. At the very best, that will deliver an extra 833 social houses next year.

Whatever the longer-term impact of this plan, one thing is very clear. Those in need of housing today, those sleeping in emergency accommodation tonight and those who will struggle to pay their rent at the end of the month are offered very little comfort by this plan.

Why did the Government ignore the Committee on Housing and Homelessness which called for a moratorium on home repossessions? The committee included members of the Taoiseach's party. Why is he walking away from the programme for Government commitments to help families in mortgage distress to stay in their homes? If they are forced out of their homes, that will make the crisis even worse.

Why did the Taoiseach ignore the call of the Committee on Housing and Homelessness for the introduction of rent certainty, linking rent to the consumer price index? Why is the Taoiseach once again refusing to invest enough money in social housing to build and buy the homes so desperately needed by children living in emergency accommodation?

The Taoiseach

Deputy Adams is well aware that what happened in this country over quite a long number of years left us in a position whereby we had neither the money nor the capacity to build what was needed in terms of affordable and social housing and to deal with the rising challenge of homelessness. It is a complex issue.

The Government spent quite an extensive period of time putting together all of the elements that relate to housing, be they homelessness, social and affordable housing, mortgage arrears, renters, voided dwellings and houses that are not in use for whatever reason. All of these factors have been included in the action plan for housing, the first chapter of which deals with homelessness. As Deputy Adams knows, the reasons for homelessness are not as simplistic as statistics might suggest. There are stories behind each of the cases of homelessness that the Government wants to address.

That is why, as the Minister, Deputy Coveney, pointed out yesterday, the detail of the first chapter of the action programme deals specifically with homelessness. We know from the report of the housing authority that 4,152 adults used State funded emergency accommodation nationally during one week in June 2016. That survey identified 1,078 families in emergency accommodation, consisting of 1,457 adults and 2,206 dependents. The number of homeless families increased from 620 in June 2015, a 74% increase, while the dependent figures increased by 67% and were 1,318 last May. Details of homeless families have been recorded since July 2014 when a total of 344 families with 749 dependents were homeless.

It is the recognition of these kinds of statistics that have brought about the significant investment by the Government. The challenge is to prove that the action plan works and will be implemented. That is why 47,000 social units are envisaged, with a spend of €5.3 billion to deal with this issue in a comprehensive way. Social units alone will not solve the problem. Rather, we will provide opportunities for those who are homeless to be housed with quick build and rapid build solutions, voided solutions, repairing houses, the acquisition of houses that are empty and, as the Deputy said, the opportunity to deal with mortgages. Significant numbers of previously distressed mortgagees are now paying their way.

The Minister for Justice and Equality will introduce a new service in respect of MABS for the thousands of cases - I understand the total is 35,000 - where there has been no communication between borrowers and lenders for whatever reason. We need to be able to deal with that in a different format rather than people receiving formal notices from banks. There is a solution to these problems, but they need to be worked on.

In respect of the discussion that took place yesterday and will take place again tomorrow, the challenge for the Government and everybody else is to make this work. I commended Deputy Curran and the Committee on Housing and Homelessness. The Government did not accept all of the recommendations, but a special appendix was inserted which dealt with each of the proposals made by the committee, which we welcomed. Not all of them were accepted, but they were commented upon favourably.

Deputy Gerry Adams

We agree on one thing, namely, that the housing crisis did not start yesterday but has been a long time in the making. It started when this and previous Governments reneged on the State's responsibility to provide homes for citizens. That is the crucial element to all of this.

Yesterday, the Taoiseach tried to blame local councils for the lack of social housing, yet the Government has failed to provide sufficient funding to allow councils to build and buy houses. He is still not providing sufficient funding. The plan promises to meet the needs of 131,000 families over six years, but 94,000 will remain in the private rental sector and will be subsidised by the State through HAP, RAS and leasing. How is that not an over-reliance on the private sector, guided not by housing need but rather by the ideological position of the Government?

The Taoiseach commended the Committee on Housing and Homelessness - it is the most commended committee in the Dáil. A lot of nonsense is talked about new politics. The Taoiseach did not take on board some of the major findings and recommendations of the committee. The number one priority recommendation of the committee was to increase the housing stock by 10,000 units per year every year. The Government's proposal falls 40% short of this. Government Deputies signed up to the plan. The Taoiseach has ignored this issue.

He also ignored my other questions. I asked the Taoiseach to tell me why the plan falls 40% short of the number one priority recommendation of the committee.

The Taoiseach

I do not accept the assertions of Deputy Adams. He is well aware that in the so-called boom times up to 90,000 houses were built per year, and the figures collapsed to fewer than 10,000. This is the most comprehensive and significant investment in the history of the State in terms of dealing with construction, housing and homelessness. The plan also includes mortgages, renters, voided units, ghost estates and so on.

This is a genuine attempt, taking into account the views right across the spectrum, of the Government to drive this process so that people can have a home and a roof over their head, so that they do not have to be in bed and breakfasts or hotel rooms and so that those who are on the streets are looked after, but also there is an opportunity to provide affordable houses for those who need them and opportunities for local authorities to deal with the situation.

I served on a council myself many years ago and at that stage it was building more houses than were required both in isolated areas and in towns, but councils lost the ability to provide houses in numbers for people. Housing associations do a good job, but it is about time county councils got back into the business of providing houses. They have been given the money, the opportunities and the incentives to open sites that are currently off limits, and they must get on with the job. This is a challenge for everybody. It is a real priority for the Government. This is the biggest investment in the history of the State in this area.

Deputy Dessie Ellis

The Taoiseach said that in 2014.

The Taoiseach

I intend that it will work and be seen to work.

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae

The Taoiseach did not give them money.

An Ceann Comhairle

Order, please. I call Deputy Maureen O’Sullivan.

Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan

In May 2015 my-----

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae

The Taoiseach did not give them the money.

The Taoiseach

I assure Deputy Danny Healy-Rae that there is more money than there has ever been before. Your machines will all be busy.

An Ceann Comhairle

Could we have some respect for Deputy Maureen O’Sullivan, please? I ask her to start again.

Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan

In May 2015 I asked the Taoiseach a question during Leaders’ Questions about TTIP, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. I outlined my concerns and those of politicians, trade unions, civil society and NGOs. The main concern was TTIP's aim to remove any regulatory barrier to profits and the profit-making potential of multinational and transnational companies. There were also concerns about banking, agriculture, the environment, food safety, workers’ rights and education. Of particular concern was the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, ISDS, which gives foreign investors the right to sue a sovereign state with a democratically elected government for loss of profits resulting from public policy decisions. I asked for a debate, and six months later we got two and a half hours in the last week of the previous Dáil, which was then dissolved.

The latest round of talks on TTIP began recently. We know that the US President, Mr. Obama, wants to speed up the TTIP agreement process. That is in spite of the fact that more and more voices are expressing concern, including some leading EU politicians, and that the protest against TTIP is gaining momentum. There are also implications from the outcome of the Brexit referendum, because the UK was one of the main EU supporters of TTIP. There is a worry that TTIP will erode the gains developing countries have been making through the World Trade Organization, such as some of the sustainable development goals. Trade policies have a role to play in eradicating poverty but they can also contribute to further poverty and inequality.

In the meantime there is CETA, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. I question the rush to support CETA. The line and the spin seem to be that there are opportunities for Irish businesses, but that is to ignore the concerns people have about the agreement. Those concerns are economic, financial and also constitutional. The ISDS settlement will create a new legal power to make a charge on the state. Article 29.5.2° of the Constitution says that the State must seek the approval of the Dáil to sign up to an international agreement that is likely to place a charge on the State. We have an example from Egypt, where the government was trying to increase the minimum wage and it now faces a lawsuit from a multinational company for the extra costs on it. We face a provisional application of CETA, and if we sign it, that means the agreement will come into effect in this country and in other EU member states before the Dáil and the other parliaments in the EU have a chance to debate it or vote on it. I suggest that we do not allow the agreement to come into effect without thorough investigation and clarification of the economic, financial and legal implications, and also in the interests of our constitutional integrity. There is a real fear that CETA and TTIP will benefit a global business model over local people, and that could also have an impact on our efforts to solve the housing and homeless crisis.

The Taoiseach

International trade agreements carry with them huge opportunities and also huge challenges. Deputy O’Sullivan is well aware of the Canadian deal, CETA. It was originally assumed to be a done deal and that it would just be signed by the European Commission. In fact, it has been determined to be a mixed agreement which includes both European and national competencies. Therefore, the elements that are appropriate to Europe will be dealt with by it, and the government of each country will have to approve the agreement in terms of its own provisions, which will obviously require lengthy discussion in some countries.

In respect of TTIP, there is a great distance yet to go in that regard. Work is starting on the 14th chapter. It was originally agreed to start the discussions when Ireland held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2013. There were two very good teams, on both the American side and the European side, and they began to discuss the many complex areas involved in TTIP. It was assumed that the agreement could be concluded towards the end of this year but, personally, I doubt whether that will happen. It will probably go some distance beyond that.

It is a precondition of the negotiations that there can be no dilution of standards in labour conditions, the environment or health. It is an issue that is proposed to be completed. It is different from the old type of dispute and the way settlements can be arranged. I assume that if and when the discussions on TTIP are concluded, the opportunity for a couple of million jobs either side of the Atlantic is one attraction, but there are issues that need to be teased out. On the European side, we have reading rooms close to Government Buildings and all of the information and notes are online for everybody to read, assess, understand and comment on. There is no secrecy in any of the deliberations from the European end in respect of TTIP. That does not apply from the American side, as it takes a different view. For us, the negotiations are all in public and up front. For those who wish to involve themselves in a deeper way, we have provided specific reading rooms for elements of the chapters that have already been concluded and those that are currently under discussion.

Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan

The Taoiseach mentioned opportunities and challenges, but there are also very serious and grave risks for countries attached to such agreements. We cannot provisionally apply CETA for a number of reasons. First, the EU is waiting for the decision from the European Court of Justice on the EU-Singapore free trade agreement, and that is not expected until the end of this year or early 2017, and there is also an issue with the legal analysis that ClientEarth has done. I urge the Taoiseach to look at that, because it found that the proposal was in violation of EU law. In addition, a German political party is filing a lawsuit against CETA in the German constitutional court. Will the Taoiseach indicate at the Council of Ministers meeting in October that we will not sign up to the provisional application of CETA, and in the meantime could he seek a ruling from the European Court of Justice on the ISDS? Under Article 218.11 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Ireland can seek to clarify the legality of the investment arbitration proposals in CETA. There are significant implications for Ireland if the ISDS goes through, because corporations and multinationals can sue the State for loss of profit and potential profit. The Taoiseach has agreed to have a debate on the issue. I hope we do not have to wait six months for the debate on this aspect of the agreement as we did for TTIP.

The Taoiseach

Deputy O’Sullivan is aware that the European Union has full competency in the area of trade and matters of common commercial policy. The European Commission negotiates on behalf of the Union in that regard on the basis of specific mandates of instruction given to it by the Council of Ministers.

The TTIP proposal is one of a number of new-style trade agreements, as the Deputy is aware, that the EU is negotiating that not only covers tariffs, services and investments but also regulatory coherence and co-operation. It would be the world’s largest bilateral trade and investment deal. A recent EU study showed that this country would gain approximately 1.4% in GDP from the deal. This is not about reducing standards or increasing costs for SMEs; it is about setting down world standards for trade for the coming years. There is some distance to go in the negotiations, which are still ongoing.

I will come back to the Deputy in respect of his comment about the European Court of Justice.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

The South East Economic Monitor report produced by the Waterford Institute of Technology, WIT, school of business confirmed that unemployment in the south east is at crisis levels and is rising. It currently stands at 12.5% compared to other regions that are experiencing a national trend of 8.4%. The report finds further that the quality of employment in the south east is dramatically lower than the national average and continues to deteriorate. The report also identifies that the reason the south east economy is struggling is due in large part to the inactivity of the IDA, Departments and Enterprise Ireland in the region over the last three decades. The south east is missing a total of 6,312 IDA-supported jobs. I am delighted the Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy John Halligan, is here because he understands this.

In Tipperary alone in the last few months, we have seen the closure of Suir Pharma in Clonmel with the loss of 134 jobs, Ranbaxy in Cashel with the loss of 140 jobs and of Clonmel Chemicals and Gleesons in Borrisoleigh. Two of those companies were indigenous, homegrown companies that had survived a number of recessions and gave valuable employment over the years.

The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, in his previous incarnation as Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation announced an action plan for jobs for the south east and that the IDA would, over five years, invest €150 million in a capital investment programme to help attract more multinational jobs to the regions. Yet, there was no mention of County Tipperary in that report, even though the Minister, Deputy Bruton, came to Tipperary for a wife. I am surprised he forgot about us.

The south east and County Tipperary, in particular, cannot endure this level of underachievement and underinvestment. The focus of the IDA must be improved. Will the Taoiseach and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor, escalate the activity of the IDA to drive inward investment into counties like Tipperary and restore fairer and more sustainable regional balance in terms of unemployment?

I was delighted to be a part of the Taoiseach's negotiations on the programme for Government. The goal of the new Government will be to deliver 200,000 jobs by 2020, of which 135,000 will be outside of Dublin. I think that is very important. I am not anti-Dublin but it is vital that we work to eliminate the two-tier economy that is emerging in our country. This is even more important in light of the inevitable economic impact of Brexit after the recent referendum. Will the Taoiseach, the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and all Departments look at rural-proofing any legislation they introduce and insist that the IDA step up to the mark, carry out more visits to County Tipperary and be more encouraging and supportive of businesses?

The Taoiseach

Tipperary is a fine county with fine people.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

Tá a fhios agam. That will not get us jobs.

Deputy Finian McGrath

It might get you the All-Ireland.

The Taoiseach

As part of the priority that is accorded by the IDA and by Government policy, it is the aim to have the vast majority of jobs spread outside of the capital city. Yesterday, the Government approved grant assistance for an expansion of an industry in Tipperary. In general, unemployment in the south east is down from more than 20.1% in 2012 to 11.9% at the end of 2014. There are 23,200 additional people in employment from the south-east region since the launch of the Government's action plan back in 2012. There was an 18% increase by 2014 in firms supported by the south-east local enterprise office. The Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, informs me that a comprehensive proposal will be put together for the south east. People from Tipperary were represented at a meeting held in Kilkenny recently where the presidents of WIT and Carlow IT and others came together to focus on what they can do collaboratively to continue to make the area more attractive as a location for investment. This involves local authorities, Enterprise Ireland, the IDA, other NGOs and organisations, chambers of commerce and so on.

Revenue from overseas visitors increased by 20% to more than €200 million between 2011 and 2013. In the hospitality sector, the south east is going to add immeasurably to Ireland's Ancient East in the time ahead. There is a lot of activity. The Action Plan for Jobs continues and is monitored by my Department. It is Government policy to spread the vast majority of new jobs outside the major cities. The broadband proposal, opportunities for power, communications and water are all things that are important in making a location attractive. As Deputy Martin said this morning, the importance of young graduates coming through from third level colleges is an added incentive and bonus there. Deputy McGrath can take it that the south east, no more than any of the other regions, is a focus and a particular priority for the Government and will continue to be so.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

My point was that IDA activity over three decades has not been up to par, so it needs to improve. Part of the reason for the continuing stagnation of the economy in the south east is down to the administrative burden being placed on SMEs and other business ventures that are having their entrepreneurial vision and passion restricted or crippled. In reply to a parliamentary question I recently submitted, I was told that the various Departments identified the cost of the administrative burden for businesses nationally at approximately €320 million annually. That is a frightening figure. I know that during the talks on the programme for Government, the Taoiseach mentioned a reform of the public services and all of the agencies. We need that figure to be driven down because people need support, not restraint. They have the initiative and the energy but they want to be allowed to do their job. Some €320 million is an astonishing figure that could be spent on, or could do, many other things.

The Taoiseach mentioned Ireland's Ancient East and all of those ideas. They are wonderful and there is wonderful buy-in from rural communities as well. However, this is about investment, attracting FDI, site visits and visits to the county by the IDA. All of Tipperary and I expect that the county will get a fair share of the cake; no more, no less.

The Taoiseach

That is partly the reason there is now a meeting of minds and experiences to put together a comprehensive overall plan for the south east to endorse and embellish the efforts that have been made there to date. When one looks at the entire sector, unemployment is down from 20% to 11.9%, although that is still too high. Every region has its attractions and its strengths. The comprehensive programme being referred to by the Minister of State, Deputy Halligan, is another opportunity to build on that.

In respect of the Brexit outcome, the Government has decided to increase staffing numbers over time in our overseas offices, particularly in regard to trade. It will be necessary to reach new markets and so on for goods and products that we produce. I met with the IDA and Enterprise Ireland quite recently, both of which are powerful agencies. World standards apply in both their cases. They have full Government support to continue working with companies here that are exporting and with FDI coming into Ireland. Yesterday, the Government approved sizeable grant assistance for an industry in the Deputy's own county of Tipperary.