Deputy Mary Lou McDonald- speech from 15 Feb 2022

Eh, Taoiseach, last week people hoped that government would finally respond to the unbearable cost of living with measures that would actually make a difference. But this didn't happen and it didn't happen because your government simply doesn't get it. Teachta Oireachtas, Aussieach, It's a Reag and Govheithag, It's Soaregu Steachta Oireachta Oireachta Oireachtas, Oireachtas, Oireachta Oireachtas. At the weekend, Teoseach, I asked people to send, to share with me their cost-of-living stories and in a matter of hours I received almost a thousand replies. replies. These are stories of extortionate rent, of cold homes, of struggling to put food on the table, to put fuel in the car, of unaffordable insurance and childcare. They are stories of hardship and worry pushing families to the edge. So, Taoiseach, I want to share some of these with you. Take Ciaran. Ciaran wrote me, we have respectable jobs, but our apartment is an icebox. We have to choose between food and my daughter's medicine or heat. Our daughter wears two pairs of PJs, pyjamas, during the day and two at night, while covered in two or three blankets to keep warm. We can't afford childcare so my parents babysit. It is impossible to get on the housing market and I feel guilty every night. Barbara says, we have nothing left. I can't buy the same amount of food I used to buy. I buy the cheapest meat and I just hope that nothing breaks down like my car or my washing machine. Amy told me, we work full time. We struggle to put oil in our tank and diesel in the car. We pay insurance. That's colossal. Feed ourselves and keep things going. There's only two of us, but I can't imagine what it would cost if we had kids. Janice tells us, 950 had rent for a one bedroom, spending 40 to 50 euro a week on petrol, 2000 on insurance. Bills haven't arrived yet for 2022, but I am really scared. Robert told me, I'm getting electricity bills at 240 to 260 euro and rent of 1,100 euro for a damp one bedroom apartment. Something needs to be done, he says. And here's Eamon. After paying utility bills, it's then a toss up between food and rent. And I had to request help from the Vincent to Paul to get some food. I am feeling so lost. Quiva says, I'm a 26 year old teacher. This year I found it so tough just to keep myself afloat. My cost of living is nearly one whole paycheck. And my question to government is, when will it change? I'm working to survive, not to live. And finally, Anna. Anna says, my ESB bill was nearly 400 euros. The government credit isn't worth the paper it's printed on. What about the cost of my petrol, my rent? This government has left me behind. And these stories, Taoiseach, are just a glimpse of what people face. The package announced last week offered only the bare minimum. And in truth, it won't make a dent for people. It's very clear that you need to do much more. But yesterday, you said there won't be any further interventions until the next budget. So you show no urgency. Instead, you dither and you delay. Taoiseach, you can't seriously suggest that those who are struggling to pay their bills today must wait until October, when maybe the government might intervene. Because the House is on fire now Taoiseach. Workers and families can't wait seven months for a fire brigade that might never come. Well, first of all, I would say that the Deputy, and thank the Deputy for raising the issue, because it's a very serious issue for many, many people across the country. And we know that inflation has risen very significantly globally. And the origins of this are fundamentally global, both in terms of oil and gas prices, which have risen dramatically across the world. And you have to acknowledge that, Deputy. As well as the unevenness between the supply of products and the demand that rose dramatically as a result of societies reopening and economies reopening after emerging from COVID-19. And this is true all across Europe and Ireland hasn't escaped that global phenomenon of inflation. So in the budget, we allocated over a billion between tax and social protection measures to help to cushion people in respect of increases in terms of the cost of living. And that was the five-year increase in weekly welfare rates, the five-year per week increase in fuel allowance, three-year per week increase in living alone allowance, 630 million package of income tax and USC reductions, and parents' benefits are increasing from five to seven weeks from July. In addition to that, the measure we announced last week was over half a billion. And that resulted in cutting electricity bills by 200 euros. And fuel allowance, again, an additional lump sum payment of 125 euros to people. The drug payment scheme being reduced to the 80 euro threshold, and you did mention that Kiran was worried about cost of medicines and so on. That was deliberately targeted at families with significant medical bills. And we've reduced that significantly over the last while. The front-loading of the working family payment. 20% reduction in public transport costs and fares, which will affect and help about 800,000 people who use public transport to get to work and so forth. A reduction in caps for school transport fees for the next academic year. Now, it seems to me, deputy, that you're saying it's too small. And hence, I have to say that what you seem to be proposing would be inflationary, would actually make things worse in respect of the measures that you are advocating. And in relation to housing, in the budget, we have allocated very substantial funds for house construction. And we accept that we need to build far more homes and far more apartments than we currently are. The good news is, throughout 2021, we had 30,000 commencements, the highest since 2008. And I would again appeal to deputies to allow projects get off the ground. Supply is essential to get rents stabilized and reduced. If we don't get up to 33,000 a year built over the next number of years, then rents will not stabilize and will not come down. And people objecting left, right and centre to housing developments are not going to help renters and are not going to help people who are paying too high a rent at the moment. And on childcare, the government is committed and we put significant allocation of funding towards childcare in our last budget to improve the pay and conditions for people working in the childcare sector and create career pathways. Because these are two big cost items, housing and childcare. But we want to go further in the next budget in terms of access and in terms of affordability around childcare and we are going to do that. But we must also acknowledge that this economy has rebounded very significantly because of good and sound economic management. I am not sure that you either acknowledge that, that we are back nearly to full employment, much earlier than anticipated, and one of the fastest growing economies across the European Union, with many, many people securing jobs much earlier after we emerged from the pandemic, than would originally have been anticipated. That should be acknowledged as well. And the government supports which were unprecedented in terms of supporting wages, in terms of supporting businesses to keep people employed, and the pandemic unemployment payment, unprecedented intervention by government over the last two years in the economy. I shared stories with you, relived experiences in the here and now, where people now are making choices between heat and food, where people now feel lost, feel frightened, and it is not an exaggeration to say that families are staring into the abyss. That is the truth you see, Taoiseach, and you cannot spin the truths of people's lives. So, you have not cushioned these people or their families. Your budget did not do it and your package last week did not do it. They are the facts. I hope that you would show a willingness to listen to that reality. What I am asking for, and what these families need, are initiatives that take costs down. I have shared with you the fact that so many are shelling out huge money to live in very small accommodation, very often in damp accommodation, tips, quite frankly, if I could use that term, Karen Corla. I have asked you time and again to intervene to bring the cost of rent down, to intervene to bring child care costs down. We asked you also to ditch this notion of a carbon tax hike in May, but you refused to do those things again. You cannot spin the truth of people's lives. People cannot wait till October for relief and for real help. So Taoiseach, I am asking you again to hear these stories, to respond and to act now, not to drive inflation, but to take costs down. We all know that people are suffering the brunt of the current inflationary cycle. Everybody knows that. Inflation has gone up dramatically all over the world. The difference, Deputy, between your party and the Government side is that we are doing something about it. Something concrete, substantial, not just sounding off about it, Deputy. You have had very little substance in what you have put forward to deal with this current inflationary cycle. As far as you are concerned, throw 2 billion, 3 billion more at it, which would be very inflationary. You have undermined, so you disagree with the basic premise that underpins the economic model in this country, which actually has resulted in a a very significant recovery from the COVID-19 situation. It is very challenging right now because of this inflationary cycle. We want to work with people, work with the trade unions, work with employers to navigate our way through this pandemic-generated inflationary cycle and to do it in an intelligent way that protects people's basic costs of living, protects their jobs and, above all, allows investment to continue in this country to get more houses built. And the most effective thing people could do and the ROCTUS members could do is stop objecting to housing developments. Thank you.