Cost of Living Mini-Budget: Motion [Private Members] Dail Éireann — 2026-05-07 ============================================================ Jerry Buttimer (FG), Cork South-Central Déanaim comhghairdeas le gach Ball as a gcuid óráidí ar an díospóireacht thábhachtach seo. I thank the Labour Party and Deputy Nash for bringing the motion before the House today. It is important, in the context of the debate we are having, to make three points. I know the Opposition has to play a certain role and I appreciate that. I have been a Member of the Houses of the Oireachtas for 19 years, have dealt with many of the Members here and I appreciate that. There is a commonality here because all of us are on the side of the people and the gnáthdhuine. We must accept that. Second, while I know it is a great line - the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach used it very well when she spoke to this motion - to say we are out of touch, aloof or immune or whatever, we are not. We have our life experiences and that of our families, friends, neighbours and the people we meet at our clinics and offices every day. We know full well that people are faoi bhrú, under pressure, with the cost of living. That is why this debate is important. We may disagree about the rubrics of the scaffolding by which we all move forward but let us not lose the tenet that what we are doing on this side of the House – I am speaking as a Member of these Houses for 19 years – is representing our people. There is merit in many of the suggestions we have heard today and it is our job to forensically go through them in the context of the debate we are having. That is why this debate is important. I am a former teacher. Deputy Cummins discussed education. Under the Minister, Deputy Naughton, initiatives are now under way to address educational disadvantage to help children and young people realise their potential through education. I spent most of my life teaching the leaving certificate applied programme as an adult education director. This is about the power of being able to see the investment in education, upskilling, training and reskilling in order for people to meet life’s needs. That is why there is a €48 million investment in the new DEIS strategy and DEIS plus scheme. Are we seriously saying in this House that we should not have that? Of course we are not. These measures represent a significant investment by the Government in a ten-year plan to tackle educational disadvantage and promote equality across our education system. Equally, we have seen the DEIS plus scheme advanced where we now have 181 schools in our education system being able to be supported under this scheme. This morning, I spoke with students participating in the think big programme in Stillorgan. These are wonderful young people coming together with ideas and creativity. Understandably, people are frustrated, angry and upset at the rising costs. However, if we were to have an objective analysis, which does not always suit the narrative some want to portray, it would tell us that we must be clear and responsible in our administration of public moneys. All of us are acutely aware of the energy price shock. It did not take a protest or a blockade to tell us that. That is why the Government acted. I am serious; we did not need to hear that. We knew it. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-05-07/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:46+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-05-07