I have had some time since the debate was adjourned last Thursday to reflect on what is contained in the budget. It is fair to say that all independent commentators regard the budget as a damning indictment of the Government. It offers nothing to the two major sectors in our society which need assistance. It is ironic that after such a short time in Government the Labour Party should, in one fell swoop, be capable of disenfranchising the employed and the unemployed at the same time. The budget offers no hope to the unemployed of gaining employment in the months ahead and it has substantially increased for those who have jobs the burden of being employed. For example, the 1 per cent employment levy speaks volumes about the typical attitude of the Labour Party in Government. The Government has taken this option in the hope that somehow or other it will be acceptable to those who are employed and that the money can be used in some way to satisfy some need the Labour Party has, without in any way thinking through the consequences it will have on employment. The Government increased employers' and employees' PRSI, and did not reduce the base or the higher rates of income tax. Indeed, one could fairly and safely say there have been increases in all areas of taxation in the budget.
How can the Government be serious about the creation of employment when the fundamentals are not right? Many Members recognise that certain areas must be addressed if jobs are to be created. Instead of decreasing PRSI, the Government has increased it. Instead of lowering taxation to make employment more attractive, the Government has done nothing, except introduce the 1 per cent employment levy on gross earned income. That represents a substantial increase in direct taxation. It is clear from what the Minister said that this 1 per cent levy is not a once off measure — I believe it is here to stay. The Minister in his Budget Statement said the yield from this levy would be in the order of £78 million this year and £130 million in a full year.
That is too big a carrot for the Government to resist in future years. That is what the Irish people have to look forward to.
Already the signs for the Government are ominous. I am surprised at the speed of the mismanagement by the Government. It usually takes a year or two before the full extent of the Labour Party mistakes in Government are clear for all to see. However, we have seen within six weeks the approach to be adopted by the Government over the next four years. If the Government remains in power for the next three or four years the consequences will be catastrophic. We cannot afford the luxury of the policies which have been enunciated by the Government for the next four years. We know what happened when the Labour Party was in Government from 1973-77 and again from 1983-86. What has happened in the early days of this Government and the contents of the budget would lead one to believe that it will not be any different. The Labour Party will follow the same well worn path. It is obvious that Fianna Fáil is happy to be back in power after a devastating election for them. The party is happy to leave its policies to one side in an effort to hang on to power and do the minimum required of it. That is not acceptable.
Looking through history books one can see the measures taken in other countries during major national crises. I am referring to crises such as the arms crises in the First and Second World Wars, when Governments and Opposition politicians joined forces. We have such a crisis here now; we have a major economic war on our hands. If this is left in the hands of the two parties in Government to deal with the results will be catastrophic. In the budget, the Government has indicated to all sectors that it has nothing to offer the unemployed and is going to further burden and drive out of employment those who have jobs. When one breaks down the figures for those who are employed, the unemployed, those who depend on the State for part of their income and the farming community who depend on Brussels for so much funding, one can see that approximately 550,000 people are supporting a seriously and desperately creaking ship which will be scuttled by the Government unless something radical is done.
I should like to analyse one of the nuggets of this Government, asset disposal or asset sales. In Opposition in the past seven years, the Labour Party berated the Progressive Democrats for bringing that concept to the fore. It brought the wrath of Cain down on us and anyone else who attempted, in their words, to sell the family silver. The Government has a new phase for privatisation, "asset disposal". There is not a murmur from the Labour Party benches about this issue. The Progressive Democrats welcome this real conversion on the road to Damascus by the Labour and Fianna Fáil parties who were not helpful in this regard. They should have been more determined to pursue, with the Progressive Democrats in Government, this very useful programme. This conversion opens up many possibilities to us. I welcome the possibilities opened up by this. I see that these funds are to be used to inject some capital equity into Aer Lingus. That amounts to £68 million on the sale of the Greencore shares but we are a long way from clarity on that matter as evidenced by the reluctance of the Taoiseach and others to deal with it when it was raised by my colleague and party leader, Deputy O'Malley, today. Many questions remain. Are we to take it from all of this that there is a possibility that aspects of the business of Telecom Éireann will be privatised? Are we to take it that there is a suggestion that areas of public transport are to be privatised? Are these issues now on the agenda? Is there to be any honesty on the part of the Government in laying down a policy? They need not be afraid of those on the Opposition benches. We would be only too willing to support realistic well thought out policies that can bring real benefit. There are opportunities in this area but they cannot be dealt with in a sly way, in a way that causes confusion in the markets and to those that are involved directly in running the State companies. That is no way to enunciate a policy at such a crucial time in the economic life of this country.
We are facing one crisis after another largely brought about by this Government's inability to deal with matters when they arise, and matters were allowed to slide since the beginning of the elephantine gestation of the formation of this Government. That is not acceptable. It is causing a loss of jobs in the country, uncertainty in the markets, confusion and lack of confidence both in the private and in the public domain. That is the kind of Government that this country cannot afford. We must divest ourselves of the type of "non-policy" that has been enunciated by this Government up to now. Otherwise, we are facing catastrophe.
The Government pretends that the Culliton report is to the fore in its thoughts. It is not. Let that lie now be exposed. It is not to the fore of this Government's policy because every action it has taken since they came into office, particularly in this budget, totally undermines the thrust of the Culliton report in terms of developing indigenous industry and creating employment here. Nothing this Government has offered over the last number of weeks would lead one to any other conclusion but that there has been a reversal of what one hoped for, a radical Government in the weeks and months ahead. We will pay a terrible price if this Government is not forced, whether from within or without, to change its ways in the immediate future.