2026-07-15

When this Government was formed just over 18 months ago, no one could have predicted the scale of the crisis unfolding in the Middle East, the disruption it would place on global energy markets and its impact on the cost of living in Ireland and across the world. In these times, the value of a capable and stable Government became clear. This coalition must continue to provide certainty for households, protect our living standards and keep our economy on track. Fuel supports introduced to shield families and workers from surging prices at the pumps have been extended into the autumn. The focus must now turn to October’s budget and the decisions needed to protect people from external shocks, sustain our prosperity and strengthen our economy for the years ahead. Independents supporting the Government helped to shape last year’s budget, with a strong focus on protecting the most vulnerable and securing meaningful, long-term benefits. Earlier this month, the largest-ever increase in the carer's allowance income disregard took effect. That is real progress, and we are committed to phasing out the means test entirely during the lifetime of this Government. The central question now is what budget 2027 will do for working people. Last year, income tax bands and personal tax credits were left untouched. As wages rise to meet the growing cost of living, workers are being unduly punished by the tax system. The people in the squeezed middle, the workers who keep our economy moving, need a meaningful tax package in October that will allow them to keep more of their hard-earned money. People living with a disability continue to face unavoidable additional costs in areas such as transport and healthcare. I welcome the cross-Government work conducted over the past year that has looked at the possibility of a permanent annual cost-of-disability payment. Budget 2027 should move that commitment in the programme for Government from the discussion phase to delivery and the establishment of this permanent payment. Inheritance tax must be reviewed. The current inheritance tax regime is penal and is not fair or equitable. Families should be able to pass on a home, farm or business without there being an excess tax burden. We must also look at how people without children can pass on an inheritance to nieces, nephews or close relatives without being disproportionately penalised. Prudent management of our economy is the cornerstone of good government. While people are struggling with the cost of living, they are further infuriated to see public money wasted. This squandering of taxpayers' money is evident across all Departments, State agencies and local authorities.

I thank the Deputy. I call the Taoiseach to respond.

The Minister, Deputy Jack Chambers, requires the full support-----

I call the Taoiseach to respond, please.

-----of the Government to implement measures to-----

The time is up, Deputy.

-----reduce wasteful expenditure-----

I thank Deputy Lowry for raising a fundamental issue insofar as it affects the livelihoods of our citizens across the country, workers, those on pensions and so on. We rarely get opportunities to discuss the wider economy in this House. I was struck that earlier this week we had a significant investment by Intel of up to €5 billion in its site in Leixlip, and there was not a whisper in this House about it. It kind of tells us a story about the degree to which this House is divorced from the reality of economics and the economy, and how to sustain the economy and stay competitive. There is rarely a discussion in here on any of that. If we take trade, for example, the main Opposition party is opposing the trade deal with Canada. Our exports to Canada have gone up fourfold since that trade deal came in provisionally. This has led to many jobs for SME companies in Ireland, as well as multinationals. Yet Sinn Féin’s response is to take it to the courts to try to get rid of it. This is the sort of extraordinarily bizarre take on the economy that we have to listen to in the House sometimes. We do not really have a proper to-and-fro debate on it. Ultimately, we have a responsibility to try to provide jobs. We are doing that, and the growth in employment has been phenomenal. At the moment, we are at about 2,794,500 people working, as of the first quarter of 2026. We have a growing population. It now stands at over 5.5 million people, which is an increase of 10% between 2020 and 2026. There has been an incredible increase of 53% between 1995 and 2026. Being straight-up about it, there are pressures that have come from that. We have to have a budget that reflects the need to sustain that level of work in our economy so that people will have access to jobs. The AI issue is causing a lot of concern. I take heart from the investment announced by Intel this week, which will be AI-propelled, actually. That industry is now looking at an upward curve in the context of semiconductors, sensors and so on. The Deputy is correct in saying that the conflict in the Middle East has had a huge impact. In the budget, we will endeavour to ease the pressure on families. There will be a package relating to income tax for families. The Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Calleary, is working on the cost-of-disability payment issue. That will be groundbreaking. It has never happened before. It is complex; it is not simple. There had to be public consultation in respect of it. We will do everything we can in the budget to try to alleviate the pressures on people brought about the Middle East war, the shock to supplies it has caused and the inflationary impact on fuel prices in particular to which it has given rise.

There is another group of people who cannot be overlooked, namely the self-employed. These people take risks, create employment and contribute significantly to the economy. The self-employed are at a disadvantage in accessing State supports and social protection. They do not have access to the new My Future Fund pension arrangements available to all employees. The Government should start setting out a clear pathway towards inclusion for the self-employed or an equivalent mechanism that will give them the same opportunity as others to build greater retirement security. Fairness for working people must include those who work for themselves. The self-employed make a huge contribution to our economy. In many cases, they are overlooked.

I appreciate the point. This is a pro-enterprise Government. That matters. I believe in nurturing and supporting companies and people who start their own businesses. Those people take great risks. In many instances, for the first ten years of a new company, they have to work 24-7. An issue we discuss with Enterprise Ireland is how to enable those companies to have capital to scale up. Part of our European Union Presidency programme is around competitiveness and giving a better break to SMEs in particular and giving them greater access to capital. Supporting the self-employed will continue to be a commitment of Government. It is an issue we keep under constant review. There is a cost-of-doing-business forum which comes under the remit of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade, and Employment and which is looking at what we can do to reduce costs, clarify and simplify regulation for SMEs in particular, which would go a long to helping them, and enhance the research and development tax credit in terms of making it available to and accessible by SMEs.