Accepting that the Government is powerless and is governed by the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 and that the national minimum wage is not yet at €12.17 per hour, which is the current rate but which will, undoubtedly, go up, given the rise in the cost of living, when the living wage working group report is published later this year, one thing the Government could do concerns the small number of public sector workers who do not receive a living wage. For a cost of approximately €1.5 million to €2 million it would be…

They are earning under €12.17 per hour.

I am sharing time with my colleague, Deputy Duncan Smith. As a country, we are unrecognisable from the young, poor and conservative State we were when the Tricolour was first raised over Dublin Castle in 1922. We are now richer than we have ever been in our history. We are more liberal, open, diverse, welcoming and confident as a society then anyone could have imagined even half a century ago. Ireland, though, is unfinished business. The idea of Ireland is a work in progress. By standard international measurements,…

-----costing €275 million in 2023. That is the kind of ambition we need to transform this society and to genuinely assist those who are on low and middle incomes. This is why the Labour Party says, for example, that we should have a monthly €9 public transport climate ticket, costing €300 million over the next six months, as a cost-saving and climate-positive intervention. It is why for a cost of €100 million, every child and young person under 18 years of age should have the ability to access their GP free of char…

I am concerned about the approach that has been taken by the Government this week. It diverts from the principles that were established by the Labour Party number of years ago, namely, that we should start by including all young people in this scheme. That is the direction of travel that we ought to pursue. We have question marks around how decisions will be made and how the GP schemes will be rolled out from here on in. There is nobody more at risk of energy poverty than those who depend on their social welfare pa…

The Labour Party wants to see an Ireland that works for all. We are honest enough to know that all the things we want and our country needs, such as affordable childcare, a transformation to a carbon-free economy and a health service we all can be proud of, need to be paid for. The same honesty should be demanded of the Government, as well as of Sinn Féin, which has yet to respond to the Commission on Taxation and Welfare's report for fear that it might discommode somebody. The Tánaiste's denunciation of the Commis…

I have to move the amendment to resolution No. 2-----

Amendment No. 1 to Financial Resolution No. 2 reads: "In paragraph (1), to delete “be extended until 28 February 2023” and substitute “be extended until 31 December 2023”." The amendment represents a request to extend the VAT cut that was introduced last spring on electricity and gas bills. The Minister has sought to extend it to the end of February but the Labour Party proposes an extension to the end of 2023. We do so for a number of reasons. It has been an important part of the measures introduced to support peo…

I am sure the Minister will join with me in thanking the members of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare for the sterling work they have done over the last 18 months. The challenges the tax base faces are very obvious. It is also strikingly obvious that we need to change who we tax, how we tax them and by how much. Does the Minister agree with the commission's central contention that we need to generate more tax revenue from wealth and assets? If so, does he intend to take any additional steps in this regard over…

I am glad the Minister thanked the members of the commission for their work. Unfortunately, that stands in marked contrast to the way in which the Tánaiste trashed their work. The Minister has expressed gratitude to the commission in a very sincere way. That is one thing but the best way he could show gratitude for its work is to implement some of its clear recommendations. There appears to be a marked reluctance to do so, however, with no indication at all of what the Government's plans might be in terms of additi…

The Minister has spoken very eloquently recently about how vulnerable our tax base is, especially in respect of some of the windfall gains we have obtained from a very small number of very successful companies that, thankfully, have decided to locate in this country and provide very good employment. On the one hand, Government members speak very eloquently and urgently about that issue but they seem to be in no hurry whatsoever to address some of the fundamentals of this problem. Irish people have legitimate expect…

I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time."

I thank the Minister for the intentions she has expressed, which are appreciated. I am more than happy, as are my Labour Party colleagues, to work with the Minister on what is a very important Bill. The Minister probably knows from her own experience - although maybe not this week when there was huge, intensive interest in pensions more generally - that when we discuss tensions people’s eyes tend to glaze over. That is unfortunate. We are living in the midst of a serious cost-of-living crisis. We have all seen the …

I move amendment No. 1 to amendment No. 1: "To delete all words after "deemed to be read a second time this day nine months, to allow for" and substitute the following: "an examination, assessment and report to the Dáil by the Minister within that period on the issues pertaining to the provision of information to pension scheme members in relation to costs and charges incurred by pension schemes and identifying and developing the appropriate policy responses and associated methodologies." People's eyes glaze over w…

That is not reflected in the attendance or contributions this evening, notwithstanding Deputy Kerrane's presence. Her interest in this matter and support for the intentions of the Bill is appreciated. It is Thursday evening. It has been a busy week that will only get busier so I am grateful to those who are present. I appreciate it. I will not dwell on matters any longer except to thank the Minister for her interest in this and her pledge to work with me and my Labour Party colleagues to deliver on the principles o…

Retrofitting is the low-hanging fruit with regard to reaching the State's emission targets and future-proofing energy security. As the Minister will be aware, in 2017 the built environment alone accounted for 12.7% of Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions. To put this into context, the average Irish dwelling emits 104% more than the EU average. This is not a record we can be proud of. This has come about not only as a result of our reliance on more carbon-intensive fuels, but also due to the poor quality of insulation…

I very much welcome this debate. It is timely and important. An Bord Pleanála is a critical arm of the State. Since it was established, it has, by and large, served this country and its citizens well. My party, namely, the Labour Party, has been a strong supporter of the principles of An Bord Pleanála when it is acting at its best. We believe in the organisation and its importance. We believe in robust, transparent decision making and adjudication systems and third-party statutory independent appeals processes to v…

I am pleased to speak on this important legislation, which the Labour Party will not be opposing, although there may be amendments that we will propose on Committee Stage and later stages. I know the Minister and everybody in this Chamber will agree that water is a public good. We have had many debates across our society in the past few months about what constitutes a public good and what should be left to the markets to decide who pays for a product or a service. We have had those discussions in the context of the…

The Siteserv report brings us back to the year 2007 and to the calamitous events that unfolded in this country and across the world, events from which we, arguably, have yet to recover. We are still dealing with the fallout. It was in June of that year that Bear Stearns bailed out two of its hedge funds with $20 billion of exposure to collateralise debt obligations as sub-prime mortgages. At that stage Bear Stearns famously said that the problem was "contained". As we know, it later had to be bailed out by the Fede…

I will pick up from where Deputy Ó Broin finished. I absolutely agree that this is not about kicking it into next month, and certainly not next year because this issue is far too urgent for that. It is about getting it right and we believe that we can get it right. While I am not a member of the committee, I speak as someone who attends the Oireachtas Select Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The amendments the Labour Party will bring forward will be tabled in my name, and those in the Seanad will…