The cost of living is having a huge impact on workers and families. Every week, people are struggling to pay their bills, food, heating, childcare, fuel - the list goes on. In a recent budget, families were looking to the Government for a helping hand, but they got absolutely nothing. The ESRI confirmed that families will be 2% worse off as a result of the Government's budget. Families are now facing into Christmas in despair and drivers are being targeted with rocketing costs. People living in my constituency in Fingal East are getting a double hit because they do not have a sustainable public transport system. They are forced to use their car and they are punished with the ever-increasing cost of diesel, petrol, insurance and tolls, including the port tunnel, which we use regularly. The simple truth is that people, if they had a reliable bus, train and metro service, would leave their car at home and use public transport, but they do not. Now, Fingal County Council is reducing the R132 by a lane to facilitate metro, which we have been awaiting for 35 years and which will be very welcome when it comes. This is another plan that is going to impact badly on drivers. It will bring traffic to a standstill and it has to be deferred until the metro works start proper. A young law student from Swords contacted me. She uses Dublin Bus to get to and from college. Her travel to college takes an hour, give or take about 15 minutes, in the mornings. In recent months, her travel time home from college has ranged from an hour and a half to two and a half hours. A resident living in Holywell trying to make the switch from car to public transport for his early commute has a persistent problem. By the time the buses arrive at his stop, they are already full. He said the situation has been recurring for so many years that it seems that most people just shrug their shoulders. They have given up on raising the issue because nothing will be done about it. Another constituent was in touch about the train service from Donabate. She said the current level of public transport is not sustainable or fit for purpose for a town with a rapidly increasing population, so it is simply not good enough. My message to the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, who represents the people in Fingal East, as I do, is that he knows what the issues are. I call on him to deliver a sustainable transport system that is reliable, effective and affordable for the people in Fingal East. This will benefit the environment and put money back in people's pockets. I call on him to support the Sinn Féin motion. If the Government votes against this motion to support workers and companies who are struggling because of the costs that are being levied on them, shame on it.

Sentiment score: -0.06