Is cúis díomá dom nach bhfuil mórán ama agam freagra a thabhairt do na hAirí. The budget was, to put it mildly, a huge disappointment. In fact, for many people who I have been speaking to, "stunned" is the only word I could use. In a budget of billions in extra spending, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Independent TDs have not just managed to deliver nothing for workers and families; they have actually managed to make them worse off. Ordinary households have been kicked in the teeth in the Government's hope that they wi…

Surely, Michael Healy-Rae did not agree to that.

Hitting the rural communities again.

That is a €500 increase.

Just not in the presidential election.

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

On Financial Resolution No. 1, it has got to the point where these increases in the cost of cigarettes are now just vindictive rather than serving any purpose. It certainly does not serve any health purpose. We know that for a number of years, there were substantial reductions in the number of smokers. That has begun to turn around despite the fact that over the past number of years, the price of cigarettes has increased by more than 34% until last year - I do not have the specific figure - taking these new figures…

That is the statement from the Minister's Government colleague, Deputy Danny Healy-Rae.

We are talking about the financial resolutions-----

-----and I am putting on the record-----

-----that I will not support a resolution that is making the lives of people more difficult for no purpose other than to serve a stated objective of the Government to give the appearance of doing something. The truth of the matter is that just like today's budget, this financial resolution is not in the interests of the people we were sent here to represent. It is, as I said, a vindictive measure on the part of Government.

It is not agreed. Vótail.

I want to speak on Financial Resolution No. 4 very briefly and support the comments from Deputy Ó Broin that this just appears to be a rabbit out of a hat. It stands as one of those examples where Ministers and probably senior civil servants sitting around a room late last week realised they had done nothing in respect of housing and needed to provide some form of a fig leaf to suggest that they were going to do something to address the housing crisis that has got worse every year with this Government. Somebody dec…

That is a good question.

I have never seen a Government throw it out before the first budget.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. I thank him for being here. We mentioned during our Private Members' business debate the other week that many families are being left in complete distress as a result of what I consider, being kind, the inefficiencies within the NCSE. A fortnight ago I raised the case of Sonny McElvaney from my constituency with the Minister of State. He is a young boy who has significant additional needs. He has made huge progress, more than anybody would ever have envisaged, largely due to the e…

-----and I received a response on 21 August that basically said-----

-----no further application or information is required at this time. I am only halfway through this story. Can the Minister of State see the frustration this family is going through, which I share?

I thank the Minister of State. I sent the OT report to the NCSE on 9 June last year. I do not know whether that report had previously been submitted to the NCSE but I know mountains of documentation were submitted. Just to give a sense of this, after all the assurances that this was going to be dealt with in July, the email I received on 21 August stated: I appreciate your ongoing attention for the enclosed. Duly confirming as per recent correspondence to the school, all documentation and information relating to th…