Mattie McGrath backs amendment number three, slams rising costs

I, too, am surprised that 10 of the 11 amendments have been ruled out of order. We have our tourism industry and we are trying to reinvigorate it again and there are many, many good holiday home operators. Okay, we always have cow buys, but that is the majority of them. I am talking about Farrowsley, Dunggara, and different holiday homes. But people need to get out, get into the sun, get into the water, get into the space. So people are so hard pressed under the pin of the collar, they should be allowed some recognition. That is why I am supporting amendment number three. As I said, also people who are subletting houses, and let us face it, we have, going back to even, you know, I remember people telling me, you know, all the people may not even return on reward now, when they got married to live in a room in their parents' house, or someone said they had their parents and they rented a room and we are back there again. Because people cannot get into property, they cannot afford it. And many of the reasons they cannot afford it, in the last year, our direct government actions have prohibited it. And not personal to you, Minister, but your actions have directly contributed to the huge costs for people to try and build a house. It is just impossible for a young couple or any kind of a couple to build a house now. Because a builder will not give you even a quotation now. Any building suppliers will not give you a quotation for more than three days. Because they are going up by the week. And also, as I said, students are being exploited. And they pay, obviously they pay to the metres and whatever else, but, I mean, there is no recognition of that. Resolution dispute, there should be some mechanism there. So, this is a feeble attempt by your government. When you want to raise something, a tax, whether it be punitive or whether it be normal taxation, it goes up at 12 o'clock at night. But here we are making a big deal of song and dance about this £100, £113 or something. And we are talking about it, and talking about it, and talking about it, and talking about it, and talking about it. Live for sure you get grass. But the people can't live. Just because everything is gone. We, in the Rural Independence, have looked for a mini-budget. That is what is necessary. It is necessary. Across the board, the price. But this amendment here is a very good amendment. I come to Minister Deputy O'Rourke and his colleagues at bringing it forward. So, we have to try and deal with this. And the public are expecting us to deal with this. Why are we so slow to react? Why does it take the departmental organisations months? Here we are, halfway to February nearly. And Valentine's weekend coming. I wish everyone a happy Valentine's weekend. And I'm just waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting. I'm willing to come through. And why can't we ever – this debate is going on forever – about different taxes and medical cards and different grants or supports. Just Deputy, I just redirect you to the amendment. I am. But the amendment is trying to try and segregate. Why can't we exclude people of huge, enormous incomes? Sure, there must be some way. It's different from when we were back in the Pion Louis day. But now we have computers. It's the same as the night here that you introduced your colleague, the pub payment. I pleaded with him to do this. Because everybody, anybody that's implying anybody now knows that PSI is paid weekly now. And the computer is on the computer. So they could give the people what they were earning. You know what I mean? Students and others who were working maybe two nights a weekend were in at 100, maybe 120. And they all ended up getting 350. Such. And trying to wean him off it now. Like trying to take away the milk from a calf. Because he loves it. Or she loved the calf. So I mean, it was stupid. What happened? You couldn't do it. You could do it. Press the button will tell you why each employee was earning. It might be a flu around the back market. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about people who are legitimate businesses who are paying people. And, you know, we've all kinds of problems now as a result of the pub people on foreign holidays. And many people didn't abuse it. But it was too much. You should get what they were getting. Supports. That's what we're talking about here. Not, you know, luxuries. And why can't we separate out? And we always try to get the fact it's too costly. The problem of social welfare couldn't do it. Separate out the chaff from the oats. I don't mean that in a bad way. We do that in harvest time. That people don't need it. Don't have to get it. Okay, we can say like the payments of businesses. There's some that got it. They won't profit. They should pay it back. But not they should. Expecting a good will they pay it back. But it's very hard to get something back that you've given out. As I said, this is in the amendment, Les Cancola, that they would be some mechanism here for dispute resolution. But also for people to. Millionaires don't need this. The fund of fuel anyway is not going to go here and there. In people's bills. Across the diesel, the fuel, home heat and aisle, ESB. You name it. Repairs the roof. Your retrofit scheme. Where you're going to pay 500 up front. When he comes in. In October. But he's delayed too. To get an assessment first. They don't have that kind of money. They're on the breadline. They're struggling. Struggling. You don't seem to get that. So they need the money in the poker. And ish. Now they need it. So I don't know why departments are so cumbersome that they can't engage with people and have a humanitarian and have a human approach. They're not knocking department officials for the sake of knocking. I'm just saying the system has got too, so unwieldy. Can't see if they have that flexibility or understanding. And as I said, we're too slow to react. We can react, of course, on budget night, but when we want something to give back to people, it takes months. I don't know when this will happen, but we're already a good number of months away from the budget. And you're looking now at some other support packages. What we need is a mini budget. And let's face it. It's going to have to happen. Keep denying and denying and put your head in the sand. And I'm not saying you personally, but the government. It's going to have to happen. Because the people will starve, as I said yesterday. And they're suffering every which way. And they can't survive. And it's not fair to our people. They don't deserve this. They've gone through two years of hell. And they've endured it. And they're resilient people. But part of resilience is within at the moment. And they're cross. And they're angry. And they're not at all happy. Or mother. Or mother. Or mother. Or mother. Or mother. Or mother. Or mother. Or mother. Maybe they're right. But I'm not Reagan. But I think it does have to happen. Helpful psychology of lack of knowledge.