While we are broadly supportive of the measures in this Bill, I have to say that this is not a sustainable approach. The Social Democrats believe there needs to be targeted measures and investment that will permanently bring down the cost of living. That has completely failed in the Government's approach. The Government has failed to take action to help the pensioners who are unable to heat their homes. The whole issue of pensioners and people on low incomes who are reliant on home heating oil has not been properly addressed. The Government has failed to help renters who cannot make ends meet. Indeed, this Government has made the cost-of-living crisis even worse for renters in terms of the increased rents they are facing, putting an already very struggling and exposed group of people under more pressure again. The Government is failing to help families to put food on the table. We read the reports today from Family Carers Ireland on the work it did when it spoke to 3,000 carers. It talks about the financial isolation they are under and the financial strain that is making their world shrink. Thousands of carers are saying they are cutting back on food and heat to make ends meet while at the same time they are paying out for crucial equipment such as wheelchairs for their loved ones, which of course should be funded by the public system. It is absolutely outrageous that given the resources at the disposal of this Government, this is not being properly addressed. The measures in the Bill are untargeted and they ignore the root cause of Ireland's affordability crisis. Unfortunately, the war in the Middle East is showing no sign of coming to an end and the energy crisis is not going anywhere. The impact of this Finance Bill, which will cost half a billion euro, will soon be forgotten. Consider what has happened with home heating oil and the increases of 67% and almost 70% between February and March of this year. This has been the sharpest increase anywhere in the European Union. The people reliant on home heating oil can often be older people and people on low incomes. In rural areas a lot of people who are on lower incomes are very heavily affected by that. They have not been properly supported by the measures in this Bill. One of the core increases in inflation has been driven by energy bills increasing by 15.5%. People simply cannot afford these increases. Ireland has the highest electricity bills in Europe. Over 300,000 households are in arrears and this is a direct result of a baffling failure to invest in our infrastructure. It is incredible that since Fine Gael has been in office, since 2011, we have no offshore wind farms. The one wind farm we did have has been decommissioned since, so we have actually gone backwards in that respect. Last year we lost over half a billion euro worth of wind energy, which was wasted because our crumbling grid infrastructure could not cope with that wind energy. We are an island on the edge of the Atlantic, yet we are not availing of this. We should be a net exporter of wind energy but we are nowhere near it because of this Government's failures. We see too the issues with pensioner poverty. Incredible and stark figures have been released by the Central Statistics Office, CSO, showing that the consistent poverty rate for those over the age of 65 increased by 70% in just one year. People who have worked and done their very best all their lives are being pushed into poverty at a time when they should be supported in their retirement years. The Social Democrats put forward proposals on this, for example, the targeted €400 energy credits for households earning less than €70,000 a year. That would be a start and would make a bit of a difference. We also need to invest in things like solar for all, which is our plan there. Existing grants would be doubled for people who want to install solar panels. We could make solar panels a realistic option for people on lower and middle incomes. It would be for those who are not covered by current schemes and those who cannot really avail of the current grants because they do not have the matching funds. This would be a once-off investment that would bring down people's energy bills, and bring them down year after year. It would be a long-term investment, it would help us meet our climate targets and it would reduce our country's exposure to energy crisis shocks. It is the kind of thinking we need but that is sorely lacking. Let us look at this Government's budget promises and the promises it made at election time. For example, affordable childcare was to be cut to €200 per month. Instead, we have seen absolutely minimal progress on that. There were promises that third level fees will be phased out. Instead they were actually increased. There was a promise of a cost-of-disability payment. A €500 payment was meant to be introduced but in the last budget we saw the incomes of disabled people actually slashed by up to €1,400 because of decisions that this Government made. Childcare in Ireland is exorbitantly expensive and very difficult to access. This is making the cost-of-living crisis even more difficult for families. We have record numbers of people now homeless. Shockingly, there are 5,604 children living without a home, which is absolutely devastating. Ar an gcéad dul síos, déarfaidh mé go bhfuil rudaí an-deacair do dhaoine. Rinne an tAire Stáit na roghanna míchearta. Tá na tosaíochtaí míchearta aige. Tá níos mó agus níos mó daoine á mbrú i dtreo na bochtaineachta ag an Rialtas. Tá rudaí go dona, go háirithe mar gheall go ndearna an Rialtas na roghanna míchearta. I also want to address the situation of the workers from Northside Home Care who are taking industrial action this week. They work long and hard hours taking care of the elderly. This is another group of people who are really suffering under this cost-of-living crisis. Despite the incredibly important work they do, they are on just above the minimum wage. People who have been working there for 20 plus years are still just above the minimum wage. There is no recognition of the work they are doing. I call on the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and his Government colleagues to actually intervene to ensure a proper wage for people doing home care work. There should be a sectoral wage agreement for that sector. It is utterly indefensible. These workers do an incredibly important job. Whether they are doing it at not-for-profit companies, or in the private sector rather than directly employed by the HSE, they are not getting the HSE going rate. It is grossly unfair. The Government needs to stop sitting on its hands on this and actually take some action. The measures in this Finance Bill follow a familiar pattern from this Government. Instead of targeting resources where they are needed most, the money is spread evenly reducing its impact and, crucially, the Government is failing to invest in measures that will reduce the cost of living permanently. That is what the Government needs to be doing. I do wonder will this Government ever learn. If it was serious about tackling the cost-of-living crisis, it would target resources where they are needed most. Crucially, this would build resilience and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. That is absolutely essential for tackling the cost-of-living crisis and preparing us for the next one, and for helping us to meet our climate targets. Unfortunately, this Finance Bill does neither.

Sentiment score: -0.09