Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-15
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Peter Burke (FG), Longford-Westmeath

The second point I want to robustly challenge is that there is nothing in this budget for workers or those who are most vulnerable in society. We have put forward a €300 million package for people who are vulnerable and to ensure that those who are working on lower incomes are rewarded. We have increased the minimum wage by 40% over the last four years. Deputies will see from the Central Statistics Office, CSO, returns that real growth in wages in our economy has come through over the last number of years, with 13 sectors growing. We have also protected the most vulnerable by reducing the VAT rate on gas and electricity to 9%, which is €100 a month, implementing the free schoolbook scheme and increasing social protection payments by €10, which amounts to €520 for families every single year, as well as making improvements to the hot meals programme.
There is also the public service pay agreement, which gives an increase of 17% over the lifetime of the agreement to those who are most vulnerable, in particular, a 3% top-up for incomes under €50,000. That is how the Government is delivering and protecting the most vulnerable. To do that, we need to have a strong engine room, a strong economy, about which Deputy Doherty would know absolutely nothing.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-15/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:30+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-15