Micheál Martin

We are talking about franchises. Deputy Murphy would not know much about it because he does not believe in business or enterprise.

We have also kept the VAT on electricity and gas at 9%. That is a help to people. If it went back up, it would be a significant burden on people. We have chosen to invest strongly in public services, which will benefit everybody. There are five budgets to come. We did a lot on taxation during the previous three years and we will do more in the budgets to come as well in respect of taxation. Given …

Actually, I do not have a housekeeper. I never have had. I do shop every week myself. It is no big deal. I go to the Douglas market and the English Market. I have my routine. The price of food has gone up. It has gone up significantly. I acknowledge that, and that is why we decided to target those on the lowest incomes. We took a deliberate decision. As I said this before in the House, all the lef…

Along with Fine Gael and the Independents in government, we said we wanted to prioritise investment in infrastructure and look after disability, not just in terms of the core disability services but education as well, with places and making sure we have a system where every child who needs a place will have it in September, as well as in terms of SNAs and so on, all of which are provided for.

Public services help everybody, workers as well as non-workers. That is an important principle we should not lose sight of.

I thank the Deputy for her very precise and clear presentation of the needs in the north east in respect of acute hospital services. It has long been a significant issue, going back decades, in terms of location and so on. Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital has been the acute centre and has emerged as the acute centre over that period. There has been substantial investment in both Our Lady of Lourdes Ho…

I think we have been very effective in creating new services in the non-tertiary centres. For example, there are some very good developments in Roscommon. In Cork, the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital has de facto become an elective hospital over time. We had that dotted around the country. Mount Carmel Community Hospital is another good example. What the Deputy is saying has merit bu…

Gabhaim buíochas leis na Baill as ucht an deis labhairt leo faoi cháinaisnéis 2026. Is cáinaisnéis thabháchtach í leis an infheistíocht is mó riamh in infreastruchtúr na tíre. The last number of years have shown us that we are living in times of great change and disruption, from Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic to inflationary pressures, the ongoing wars in Europe and the Middle East, deglobalisa…

The European Union Single Market has been hugely important to this country and we need strong international relationships. The introduction of widespread tariffs by the US, although capped at 15%, will no doubt impact on our economic growth and has been a serious consideration in preparing this budget. We are fully committed to delivering a strong and stable economy, in which every business, thro…

Of this, €102.4 billion is being allocated for the next five years, an additional €23.9 billion on what was previously allocated in the NDP. A further €10 billion in equity and fund releases is being provided for megaprojects in water, energy and transport. Crucially, a significant element of Government policy in the housing market is to "crowd in" investment from the private sector. The State can…

It gets the Deputies going.

No.

Sorry?

They all will lump together-----

Hear, hear.

Keep going.

The Deputy wanted us to spend more.

Níor léigh an Teachta an buiséad in aon chor.

Tá 14% níos mó sa Ghaeltacht.

It is in the budget.

There is.

In the overall scale of public expenditure - and the national development plan has been a very significant initiative by the Government - I am somewhat surprised at the Deputy's concentrating on, relatively speaking, areas that were covered last year in terms of spendings that should not have happened, specifically the OPW expenditure on a bike shed. I do recall, however, that it was Members of th…

There were lots of representations from all of them.

You guys wanted a bike shed.

I did not want any bike shed.