People power works. That is the lesson of the protests. When people get out and protest, and organise and mobilise, they can force a Government that is failing them to make concessions. Trump's war means every single working person in the world is paying an economic price for Trump's blood lust, his imperialism and his support for the Israeli regime. We are all paying now. People who supported Trump a couple of years ago who thought he was a friend of the little person should frankly hang their heads in shame because he has revealed himself for what he always has been: a billionaire property speculator, in with big business, willing to slaughter people for profit and for the billionaire class. Now, ordinary people in Ireland and across the world are paying the price and the hauliers showed us you have to respond when you are screwed by the consequences of this and a system that more generally favours the rich. That is the fact. The Government made concessions to one group but the widespread sympathy for the hauliers was because huge numbers of other people, who got nothing from the Government's concessions, have been crucified with the cost-of-living and housing crises and are angry about it. They are right to be angry because the fact of the matter is this Government, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, represent the bosses and the rich. I decided get a few figures on the current distribution of income and tax in this country and it really tells its own story. All the workers in this country combined, and there are 3.3 million of them, earn €130 billion. In total, they pay €32 billion in tax, which is 25% of their income. There are 170,000 employers in this country. Guess how much they earn? They earn €318 billion between them, which is more than twice what all the workers earn. How much do they pay in tax? Remember the workers who earn a lot less pay €32 billion. The bosses, who earn €318 billion in profits, which is rising every year, pay €23 billion, about 8% of their income. Workers are subsidising the obscene profits and lifestyles of the rich and these people are profiteering off the cost-of-living and housing misery that ordinary working people are suffering. That is why workers need to take the lesson of the hauliers and get out on the streets, starting with May Day tomorrow, the trades council march, and building up to the budget next year. We need to do what was done in the tax marches in the late 1970s and early 1980s when the working class of this city and across the country mobilised, fought and demanded tax justice because they are certainly not getting it from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. There is a list as long as my arm of workers who are being screwed. School caretakers, from whom I got messages this week, are first into the school and last out. They are let go at Easter, the summer holidays and at Christmas and they have no pensions. The Oireachtas TV workers, who I will mention again, the people who film these proceedings, are let go. Even though they work for the Oireachtas, they are let go at Easter and every time the Dáil is off, during the summer and at Christmas. Their average earnings are €12,000 and because they have organised into unions to fight for their rights, they are now being victimised and taken off the roster. I have been highlighting in recent weeks the northside homecare workers who provide homecare to vulnerable sectors of our society who are out on strike because their wages were slashed in austerity in 2009 and they still have not had their incomes restored. They are fighting for a 9% pay increase and are being victimised as well. Shop stewards were suspended this week for organising trade union action. Workers need to get on the streets to fight back.

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