I thank the Deputies for their important contributions to this debate. I acknowledge that they are genuine in bringing concerns about the cost of living to the floor of the House. These are really important issues - emotive but with very real impacts on our people. I am committed, as are all my colleagues across government, to improving living conditions for all. That is what we are doing and what we will continue to do. Fundamentally, our economy is sound and robust. The data shows we are performing very strongly, particularly when it comes to jobs and income. This is further evidenced by today’s unemployment numbers. I see unemployment and incomes as being intrinsically interlinked. The best way out of poverty is through employment. The best way to raise living standards is through employment. I recall the dark days of the 1980s when Ireland was scourged by joblessness, long-term unemployment and emigration. That is not the case today. The latest CSO data points to a record number of persons in work at over 2.8 million people with rising participation and sustained jobs growth. The labour market remains close to full employment with record rates of activity and very strong net inward migration. While the labour market has cooled down, we still expect to see further employment growth this year and in 2027. Forecasts from the Central Bank and the Department of Finance point to solid slowing employment growth in 2026 and 2027, with close to 50,000 jobs added per annum. Ireland's unemployment rate also remains far below the European average as we continue to create jobs at rates that are multiples of our European peers. The annual rate of inflation was 2.2% in 2025, relative to 2.1% in 2024 and 6.3% in 2023. We are aware of the challenges posed by inflation here and we are monitoring price developments very closely. I note that the Central Bank recently revised up its outlook for inflation in 2026 reflecting pressures on the services and energy sides. My colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Dillon, earlier outlined how many of the issues raised here this evening are being addressed through the likes of budget 2026, the Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity and other fora. With any decisions, whether that be tax changes or wages, there are trade-offs. We have to make sure we strike the right balance between decisions and actions that are fair and sustainable for our workers and our economy, and ones that will not have significant negative consequences for employers and competitiveness. I understand the arguments Deputies have put forward on costs and wages. The Minister of State, Deputy Dillon, earlier outlined the sizeable increases in the national minimum wage over the past few years. Just last month, the minimum wage increased again by 65 cent. This is an increase of 4.8% and is projected to be well ahead of inflation. Our current rate of €14.15 an hour means that Ireland has the second highest minimum wage in the EU, second only to Luxembourg and is among the highest in the world. When adjusted for purchasing power standards, we have the fifth highest minimum wage in the EU. The Low Pay Commission when making its recommendations for a national minimum wage has a statutory obligation to have regard to and report on several factors, such as changes in earnings, income distribution and the likely economic effects of any recommendation. The Government carefully considers the recommendations of the commission, and of course closely monitors labour market developments and cost-of-living concerns. There has to be a balance between a fair and sustainable rate for low paid workers and one that will not have significant negative consequences for employers and competitiveness. I fully expect the national minimum wage to continue to increase over the coming years. I also listened to contributions on the effects of high energy costs on households. The Government is deeply aware and concerned about the pressures placed on both households and businesses by high energy costs. Providing supports to alleviate this pressure has been a priority for this Government and extensive work has and will continue to be undertaken across government to address these challenges. As outlined earlier, the Government has clearly demonstrated its commitment to supporting households to meet energy costs. It has delivered significant investment in energy infrastructure and energy efficiency measures. The increased targeted supports provided through budget 2026 confirm our ongoing commitment to support households and businesses to meet energy costs. The budget package provided significant supports to help householders with the cost of heating and other energy bills. The fuel allowance increased by €5 to €38 per week, which is a 15% increase well ahead of inflation. For the first time, families receiving the working family payment qualify for the fuel allowance. This change will benefit an additional 43,000 households across the State. The formation of the energy affordability task force will ensure that a whole-of-government approach is taken to continue to tackle this issue. While the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, has carried out extensive monitoring of the Irish retail energy market before, during and in the aftermath of the energy crisis, it found no evidence of market failure. Recent analysis by the International Energy Agency, IEA, and Nevin Economic Research Institute, NERI, has outlined the importance of progressing the programme for Government's commitment to "commission an independent review into the speed and level of passthrough for wholesale prices to retail prices, with an additional assessment of the overall price dynamics and an overall focus on the competitiveness of the Irish economy." At the request of the Government, the CRU will lead this independent review of the relationship between wholesale and retail energy prices. That work will be completed in 2026. If we want to tackle high prices, we need to examine costs to business. The Minister of State, Deputy Dillon, mentioned a few initiatives the Government is undertaking to address business costs and the measures we brought forward to improve working conditions. In 2024, the then Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Department of Social Protection published a report examining the impact of such measures as auto-enrolment retirement savings, parent's leave and benefit, statutory sick pay, an additional public holiday, a living wage and remote working. The report highlighted that there will be cost impacts on firms from these measures but with significant differences by sector. In particular, the impacts on the likes of the accommodation, food and retail sectors were highlighted, especially arising from the transition to the living wage. Reflecting on the findings of that review, a range of measures were brought forward to assist businesses in adjusting to the increased costs as well as more generally to improve the cost competitiveness of firms. The implementation of those measures will improve the cost competitiveness of SMEs. For example, the Low Pay Commission is considering a lower employer PRSI threshold as part of any future minimum wage recommendations. In addition, the application of an enhanced SME test will ensure there is increased consideration of the business cost implications of future Government decisions. The Government also responded with last year's Action Plan on Competitiveness and Productivity. In response to international economic developments and in line with another commitment in the programme for Government, the Government expedited the action plan, which was published on 10 September 2025. It reflects a whole-of-government approach to domestic drivers of competitiveness, focusing on areas firmly within our domestic control. The development of the action plan has been informed by extensive consultation across Departments and with external stakeholders. It contains 85 actions for enhancing Ireland's competitiveness and productivity performance, with 26 of them identified as priority actions. The actions are grouped into six thematic areas, including productivity, sustainability and a focus on SMEs. There has been considerable progress in the relatively short time since the action plan was published last September. Just under half of the actions are due for delivery in 2026. The remaining actions were delivered in 2025 or are scheduled for delivery from 2027 to 2030. This debate has been very useful. It is also useful - in fact, it is essential at times - to take a step back and look at our economic performance in context. Our economy does not operate in a bubble. We are heavily impacted by international sentiment and developments. Today’s unemployment numbers from the CSO are further evidence that we are getting a lot of things right. The fact the unemployment rate remained below 5%, at just 4.7% in January, despite the turbulent external environment, speaks volumes.

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