Michael Collins
Cork South-West · Independent Ireland · Ireland
“This matter has been raised twice already this morning, but it is hugely important. I will make a personal appeal to the Taoiseach regarding Skyclarys and the further delay that has now arisen. Yesterday, Emma O'Shea came to Leinster House from west Cork with her mother, father and brother.”
“Another huge problem which normally arises in August is that relating to school buses. Parents have no way to get their children to school because of the nearest school rule. The current and previous programmes for Government contain promises that this will be done away with, but nothing has happened. The rule needs to be abolished.”
“Every parent knows that September has become one of the most expensive months of the year. While free schoolbooks are welcome, many families now face growing costs for other items. Parents are being asked to purchase laptops that cost €400 or more, make increased payments for school transport and pay charges to cover examination fees.”
“Either 25 children are left without a school place this September, or two senior infants classes are merged into one class of 34 children. Does the Minister of State agree that schools should not be punished for helping to solve an enrolment crisis? Will he immediately sanction the additional teaching posts required for St.”
“Education should not be measured by means of the distance someone lives from school, and school transport should not be measured on that basis either. I want to raise a matter that Councillor Bill Clear brought to my attention. It is a very serious issue regarding St. Corban’s National School in Naas in County Kildare.”
“I was chairperson of a board of management and know the difficulties that schools face just because they are one or two children short. That can be made up as the year goes on but it is a crisis that Councillor Clear finds unacceptable.”
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“Farmers are calling for a minimum subsidy of €250 per hectare to remain viable. Last year, Fine Gael pledged €60 million annually for the tillage sector, which equates to €175 per hectare over five years, yet budget 2026 has allocated only €50 million falling short of the commitment and the sector's needs. Let us not forget the environmental value of tillage farmers. Irish tillage systems have one of the lowest carbon footprints in agriculture, producing just 1.9 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per ha on average. Farmers are incorporating straw in the soil, growing cover crops and improving nitrogen efficiency, which all contributes to climate goals.”
“Fertiliser prices, for example, range from €410 to €440 per tonne for calcium ammonium nitrate, CAN, and crop protection costs have risen by 4% in 2025 alone following increases of 20% in 2022 and 9% in 2023. Machinery costs account for 25% or 30% of total growing costs, while fuel and seed prices remain volatile. Despite these challenges, Teagasc forecasts a 40% increase in tillage incomes in 2025, bringing the average to €42,000, but this is still below the national average farm income of €48,500, and much of the increase is attributed to subsidiary livestock enterprises, not crop production. These figures do not reflect profitability; they reflect survival. The gross margins for spring barley are forecast to increase by just €85 per hectare while costs remain high.”
“I have been requesting statements on tillage for the past few weeks. I acknowledge the Chief Whip for her help in making sure we got a chance to speak on behalf of Ireland's tillage farmers. It is an essential yet increasingly vulnerable part of our agricultural landscape. The tillage sector is in crisis. For the third consecutive year, farmers are facing financial losses. Despite their resilience and commitment to sustainable practices the economic reality is stark and unsustainable. The facts are the sale price of barley in 2025 is between €185 and €195 per tonne at 20% moisture, which has barely changed from prices seen in 1985. That means that 40 years on, we are looking at the same prices. Yet, the cost of production has skyrocketed.”
“These failures contributed to Harvey's suffering and ultimately his death, despite his parents' tireless advocacy. There needs to be urgent reform in Ireland's paediatric healthcare and disability services. There needs to be a full independent inquiry. I have been in the Dáil since 2016 and am an Independent TD. On previous motions of confidence in Dara Calleary, Barry Cowen and Frances Fitzgerald, I did not agree with a no-confidence vote. In most of these cases, reports were being drawn up. We are now in the same situation. A full multidisciplinary report on Harvey's healthcare is being drawn up and the course of Independent Ireland's action will depend on that outcome.”
“It removed Harvey from the scoliosis surgery waiting list without informing his parents. It delayed urgent care. It delayed surgery for 33 months. It gave inconsistent medical advice, which left the family confused and unsupported. It failed to co-ordinate care, leading to the worsening of Harvey's condition. His spine curved 130 degrees, crushing his lungs and heart. It ignored repeated pleas for help, including requests for meetings with health officials while Harvey was still alive. Disability services abandoned Harvey in 2019, withdrawing disability support without explanation. They failed to provide essential equipment, including the communication device he waited five years for. They neglected specialist care, leaving Harvey without regular access to professionals for his complex needs.”
“From what I understood from listening to everyone in there, they are calling for an independent statutory inquiry into CHI's handling of children with complex health needs, which I fully agree with. Nowhere did I hear anyone calling for someone's resignation, and I am led by what the people want. I know the Tánaiste has expressed deep regret and acknowledged the family's pain. He has requested a full multidisciplinary report on Harvey's care timeline through the Minister for Health. We should be concentrating on CHI and Tusla, which have dramatically failed parents to the point of someone dying. I am pretty sure I heard in the audiovisual room that parents have been reported to Tusla to block them from expressing how their children have been treated. CHI had similar failures.”
“I would like to extend my deepest sympathies to Gillian and Stephen on the heartbreaking loss of their son Harvey. Harvey's story has touched the hearts of people throughout Ireland. He was a bright, brave young boy who endured immeasurable pain while waiting for care he desperately needed. No parent should have to fight for years to secure surgery for their child. No child should be removed from a waiting list without explanation. Harvey deserved better. His family deserved better. We, as public representatives, must ensure that no other family suffers the same fate. Yesterday, I attended the meeting in the audiovisual room hosted by Senator Tom Clonan.”
“The will of the people will have to be heard by the Department. It has to stop this carry-on of putting off the decision for another 12 months. It should make the right decision and stop the mussel farm in Kinsale.”
“I have raised the proposed mussel farm in Kinsale with the Taoiseach before. This proposal, which will cover a vast area of sea, will have huge negative consequences for tourism, watersports and fishermen in the area. The guidelines must be changed. When I raised the Kinsale issue and formally called for change, my request was refused by the Minister, Michael Creed, at the time. The guidelines must be changed. This Kinsale mussel farm application is going on since 2024. There have been 21 years of ducking and diving. This week we learned that the decision to refuse or give a licence is being kicked down the road. I have a booklet that contains the names of 7,000 people who have signed objections to this farm. Surely 7,000 voices against the mussel farm being thrown at them in Kinsale will have to be heard.”
“Let us face it: who in their right mind would buy one of these homes? It is not just the blocks. I have a case right now where the structure of the house is completely unstable, not because of the materials, but because of the builder and he is walking away scot-free. We have all heard of cowboy builders and, unfortunately, there are plenty of them still out there. People buy homes in good faith with engineer reports and mortgages based on those reports yet they have no hope of getting justice when things go wrong. This is unacceptable and is why strong, new laws must be passed that protect homeowners and hold those responsible to account. If there is anything we can do in the House to make this easier for anyone affected by these defective blocks and defective building practices, we should. The nightmare needs to end.”
“The vision they have for their new home such as what colour the walls will be painted, what kind of furniture they plan to buy, what kind of a kitchen they want to put in and all the usual joy that comes with a new home for them is gone. What has happened to these people is a nightmare. Their dreams are crumbling around them just like their homes. Instead of sitting around the kitchen table talking about their future plans, they are sitting around the table in limbo. They cannot plan for the future. They cannot even think about the future because they are stuck. Most people have very little knowledge of building materials, court cases or dealing with banks on a daily basis but these people now think of little else other than the fact their homes are falling down and they cannot put their homes on the market and sell.”
“I am in full support of this vital motion to reform the defective concrete redress scheme. Families across Ireland are living in homes that are crumbling around them - unsafe, uninsurable and unfit for human habitation. The current scheme is failing them. The appeals are delayed for years. Partial repairs are unsafe, and the financial burden is crushing. These families did nothing wrong, yet they are being taxed twice and forced to manage complex rebuilds on their own. I agree that we need to stop partial remediation, restore full redress and establish an independent authority to oversee the process. Mental health supports, emergency housing and fair access to insurance and mortgages must be guaranteed. When people buy their first house or new home, the excitement of getting the keys and walking through the doors is second to none.”
“The next day, a machine was put in and the river was cleaned out. A scheme was done there. The bottom line with these schemes is that 2031 is not good enough. Ballylickey has been left with nothing happening and the same is true in Ballinascarthy, with the OPW passing the buck to the council.”
“Good God almighty, the Department is only looking at a report now and considering it. That is not good enough. How can I go back to the people with that? The same is true for Ballinascarthy. When there is a flood, they are terrified. I think of the local people in the hall and the mighty people doing their best for them, including Councillor Daniel Sexton, who tried to help them, to see if they could block the water from coming in. The rivers are blocked but the Minister of State never mentioned that in his reply. Is there anything being done on his side of the border in relation to the rivers? There were fewer rules about it when I got into politics years ago. Bandon was being flooded because the river was blocked. I told the council I would put in a machine myself and would pay for it myself.”
“Skibbereen is a success but there are 150 more schemes to do. Bantry is not going to be done until 2031 but 50 years ago businesses there were being flooded. That is not good enough. I plead with the Minister of State to go back and fight to see if we can bring delivery forward to 2026 or 2027 instead of all of this carry-on, where we have to go here and there and talk to this and that body. We need to go in and do the job. The response in relation to the situation in Ballylickey all the way up to Coomhola, including St. Colum's pitch, is that the Department is examining a report. In 2017, the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, went with me along the river. We looked at the houses and we saw the water up to the walls of the houses, including that of Dan Dineen and many others.”
“I thank the Minister of State for the reply but the problem here is that the can is being kicked down the road in relation to the Bantry flood scheme. It looks to me as if the Minister of State in charge of the OPW, whoever it may be, will be heading down to Bantry for the next six or seven years. I will be giving the same spin below, telling businesses that I am very sorry but we will have to wait for the next flood when the television cameras will be down and we will follow the Minister of State and reporters around. The bottom line is that 2031 is too far out. This problem has been going on for 50 to 60 years. How in the name of God can the Department turn around and say that it has done 56 of them? Skibbereen was one and it was a success. I am not going to say anything different but what Bantry needs is a similar scheme.”
“A bit of a bridge that was struck by a vehicle three or four years ago was put back up but other than that, the river is blocked and there are other works to be done. We are now in October and they do not know whether they are going ahead or not. Their hearts are in their mouths with the news of every flood that is coming. It is the same with St Colum's pitch in Kealkill and the Ballylickey river. It is backing itself up, it is blocked and it is flooding the pitch. It certainly must have contributed to the massive flood recently at Coomhola bridge. It burst out over the bridge and into a house. Places like Madore, Reenrour and Inchera suffer from rivers that are not being cleaned out. Can the Minister of State tell me today that there will be a programme in these areas for the rivers to be cleaned out? That is all I ask.”
“It is common sense; clean out the rivers. Good God almighty, if you had a bath at home and you blocked the outlet, it would overfill and spill. The pearl mussel is always mentioned. I have nothing against the pearl mussel, of course, but the Minister of State knows damn well that if the river floods, the pearl mussel will be pegged out into the field and die anyway. There has to be some way forward. Inland Fisheries Ireland is away with the fairies because it has no notion of cleaning out a river. It is quite happy rolling along and implementing its rules and regulations. When we fast-forward to February 2025, the people of Ballinascarthy, another side of west Cork, were absolutely destroyed by a flood. Everyone in the country was screaming and roaring on their behalf but not one thing has happened since.”
“We cannot guarantee that if there is a flood tomorrow, it will not happen again. Not far from Bantry, there is St. Colum's football pitch in Kealkill and the Ballylickey river. In 2017, the Minister of State, Deputy Kevin Boxer Moran, visited with me and it was embarrassing. I will never do it again. I will never again take a Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW into a house. I took him into the house of Dan Dineen and many more along the Ballylickey river. In 2017, I told the Minister of State what the problem was, as did the people, which was that the river was blocked. Fast-forward to 2025, the river is still blocked. My brother, Councillor Danny Collins, was drawing bags of sand two weeks ago to houses to stop the water going into the houses. Why? For some insistent, God damn reason, they will not clean out the rivers.”
“I am worn to my teeth from going around with Ministers every time there is a flood, spreading sympathies to business people when their businesses have been destroyed. Some have gone out of business and walked away because they could not get insurance. The "cross cover", or whatever it is called, is not covering businesses. Why has the flood relief scheme not been delivered? There is now a recent announcement saying it will be delivered in 2031. In the name of God, what are Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil doing in government, because they are not delivering for the people of Bantry? They cannot wait until 2031. The businesses cannot wait. The people living there cannot wait until 2031 for the scheme. It has been going on for 40 years and maybe longer because that person is only 50 so they were only a child 42 years ago.”
“I thank the Minister of State for being here with us today to discuss a very important matter for the constituency of Cork South West, namely, the many areas of flooding and, in particular, the Bantry, Ballylickey and Ballinascarthy flood relief schemes. This morning, I was talking to somebody from Bantry. They said that in 1983, 42 years ago, they had to sit in a shop with their legs up in the air to avoid the floodwater that was coming into the shop. It is 42 years later and there have been no changes. There is something wrong somewhere along the line. The Government has been place for God knows how long and it has failed to deliver a proper flood relief scheme for Bantry. That is all the people of Bantry want.”
“The whole thing has gone upside down and needs a little common-sense thinking. I would appreciate if the Minister of State showed that and talked to his colleagues.”
“I have another minute. Good. Men and women are trying to get a start in life but are being refused in their first steps. It is nothing short of scandalous and the reasons for the refusals leave me scratching the back of my head. To my sincere embarrassment, I can look at a site and see holiday homes at sky level behind the site where the house is proposed to be built and they are being refused because the new house is too high. They might have 20 acres and are being told to go to the neighbour's ground to get planning permission. They cannot do that. They only have so many acres. They can only do so much. Couples who want a one-off house are refused by the same council and are looking for zoned land close enough to the same area. The council will refuse a one-off house but allow 100 to be built up or down the road.”
“Genuine people who can build their own houses, pay for their own houses and get a mortgage and have everything going for them are being refused. I have seen situations where there are a load of houses and people are told theirs is too high. There are eight or ten houses behind them, most of which are holiday homes, and they were able to get planning permission. That gives the likes of me a kick in the backside, because people ask how the holiday homes got planning permission when they are living in the locality and are refused. There seems to be one law for one group and another law for another group. Will the Minister of State look at those reasons because people's whole lives are being destroyed by spending a year or two years trying to get planning permission and then being refused? Am I right that my time is up?”
“Of the last two issues I dealt with, one was about planning permission in west Cork and the other was a housing issue in west Cork. Someone has been on a housing list for 18 or 19 years and cannot get a house. That shows the crisis that exists. Week in and week out, people come to my office pleading for planning permission and the reasons for refusal are simply shocking. The Government has to change the planning guidelines that are given to the planners because whatever way they are being read, they are saying, "No. No. No." to the applicants. The Minister of State comes from a rural area, so he must deal with the same problems as I do. Surely be to God it is no different. I expect him to feed into the idea that the planning guidelines need to be completely changed and looked at sincerely.”
“However, the worrying factor is that such a building will have to be at the rear of the existing building. In many cases, the site layout will not allow for this due to boundaries being too close to the rear of the house. Where this is the case, exemptions should extend to either side of the dwelling, provided the cabins are not higher than a single storey and are authorised locally and not by the planning authority. This is where things will get done. If this does not happen, the legislation will favour some but not all. That is the problem with a lot of legislation; it suits some people but it does not suit quite a lot of people. The housing crisis is a national emergency. I am truly frustrated by the lack of sincere effort made by successive Governments on planning.”
“Independent Ireland welcomes this Bill. It is a short and narrow Bill but it will be an important one if it keeps the wheel turning for social and affordable housing. Independent Ireland will always support a measure that lets councils and housing bodies keep building but, let us be honest, this is a technical fix, not a housing plan. What is the Minister of State's plan? Today, I do not see anything different from what I have seen in the past nine years. Up to 5,000 children are now homeless and 16,000 people in total are without a home. Where is the long-proposed exemption for detached cabin homes annexed to existing dwellings? Is the proposal that is yet to come before us for approval to increase the floor area to 45 sq. m? I think that is adequate if properly designed.”
“I called last week at the Business Committee for an urgent debate on the fishing crisis in this country and the recent proposals. The International Energy Agency has found that retail energy prices in Ireland are three times higher than the wholesale prices. Irish households are basically paying the highest electricity prices in Europe, leaving energy providers laughing all the way to the bank as householders are left in tears. We need a sincere debate here in the Dáil on how this situation can be turned around.”
“This is a serious situation farmers find themselves in when they are buying acres of land for €18,000 per acre. It is astonishing what is going on in the dairy sector. There is nothing extra provided for suckler farmers either. With regard to the fishery sector and pelagic fish, dramatic cuts are on the way. The National Inshore Fisherman’s Association requested extra funding but it received nothing, despite it being on its knees for a long time. There is no scheme set up as such for any of those sectors going forward.”
“She turned on the two Ministers and took them apart because they had no answers. They gave her €10 and no more. She said she was at the filling station this morning to fill a tank of diesel and some of that money was absorbed straight away from the very word go. I am very worried about the agriculture sector, tillage in particular. Tillage is on its knees at present. There is zero extra in the budget for tillage farmers who are suffering. After meeting with the Minister last week, they believed there would be some kind of an answer, but they got nothing. The dairy sector is going through derogation at present. The price of milk is dropping. It has dropped by 3 cent in Dairygold Co-Op Superstores in west Cork and by 1 and a half cent in some other co-ops.”
“Ordinary families today are feeling very sour and bitter. With regard to pensioners, this morning, I was listening to “Today with Claire Byrne”. Liz, a pensioner, was on the show speaking with the two Ministers, Deputies Chambers and Donohoe. The two Ministers were way off their game. She was able to tell them to stop talking high nonsense and explain that although she is getting an extra €10, more is coming out of her pocket. She explained she cannot pay bills and that the little bit of savings she saved up all her life is going to pay bills. Pensioners will receive a measly €10. These people cannot be expected to go back out to work at 70 or 75 years of age. They cannot heat their home or buy food. They cannot pay the bills. There is very little between profit and loss in their situation. She was rightly upset.”
“This budget did nothing for the ordinary hardworking mother or father who gets up every morning, works hard, puts the food on the table and pays the taxes for everything else to move in this country. They are taking a serious hit in this budget. That is the response I received from quite a lot of people. As I mentioned yesterday, people are continuously working but they have nothing left at the end of the week. They are finding it difficult to accept this budget. It is completely out of touch with the reality and the promises that were made. Of course, the Government fed them so much last year because it wanted to buy votes. That is the reason they accepted that this year they would get at least a fraction of what they got last year, but they did not. Rather, the Government took it all back.”
“I wish it was being brought in straightaway but unfortunately, it will be dragged out until next July. It is good news for hair salons as well because they are in dire trouble. There are 600 such businesses. The Social Democrats, the Labour Party and People Before Profit do not give a damn about 600 café and restaurants owners. My God, it is easy to know they do not talk to their constituents because if they did they would know the situation they are in. The other side of this is childcare. The Government promised that no parent would pay more than €200. There is nothing in the budget to meet those people’s needs. They are struggling. Childcare is probably the second biggest bill coming into a household other than a mortgage. There is nothing for those people.”
“I do not want to stand up and criticise everything. Independent Ireland and I have called for a VAT reduction from 13.5% to 9%. That reduction has arrived, which is a good news story. I am astonished to hear the Social Democrats, the Labour Party and People Before Profit continuously dismiss this as a non-event. I am not going to do that. They are on about the fast food industry, but most of the fast food businesses I know are small businesses. Speaking of Supermac’s, someone sent me a message that it is an Irish-owned business comprised of franchises of small business owners, not multinationals. They employ 4,500 people. Someone said McDonald’s employs 11,500 people, a lot of whom are students and people looking for part-time jobs. It is a good news story for those businesses.”
“They got zero. That is an astonishing hit for the inshore sector. The statement continues that the Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, and his colleagues "speak often about supporting rural Ireland and protecting traditional livelihoods, but this budget tells a very different story." What they are saying is that there was a non-delivery for the inshore sector, which is struggling and on its knees at present. I would like to know about the roads budget, the OPW and water treatment plants, but my time is up and I will give way to my colleagues.”
“The National Inshore Fishermen’s Association issued the following statement: The National Inshore Fishermen's Association, NIFA, wishes to express our deep frustration, disappointment, and sense of abandonment following the announcement of this year's budget. Just €7.4 million has been allocated to Bord Iascaigh Mhara, BIM, for sustainability, a figure that once again shows how little value this Government places on the inshore fishing sector and the families who depend on it. For the thousands of men and women working our coastal waters, this is not just a number on a page - it is a clear message that we have been forgotten. While €357 million is provided for broadcast, €65.4 million for TG4, €84.9 million for major arts projects, €10.7 million in extra funding for Sport Ireland, and €3 million to establish League of Ireland academies.”
“They deserve more than tokenism; they deserve dignity. This budget is a missed opportunity. It could have been a budget for fairness, balance and vision. Instead, it is a budget of imbalance and neglect. On agriculture, the tillage sector is on its knees. This was the day to deliver but there was zero. There was no suckler grant increase this time; there was zero. The farming bodies are a calling it a non-event today. On derogation, the dairy sector and the problems with the drop in the price of milk, there was no addressing of those situations today. The mackerel quota looks like it could drop 70%, which would decimate Irish fishers. The Government has stood over the decimation of them before. Surely be God it should stand up strong this year. However, there is nothing for inshore sector.”
“This budget does not help them get a home. During the election, this Government promised that the cost would be down by €200 per month per child. Where is that promise today? Aside from the rent or the mortgage for a typical family, the second biggest expense is childcare. Where are the election promises? They are not there. It promised false promises. On healthcare, the promises ring hollow. Waiting lists grow. Services are stretched. Rural hospitals are under threat. We need investment in community care, GP access and mental health services, not just headline figures. For our older citizens, a €10 pension increase is welcome, but it is not enough. St. Vincent de Paul said it should be €16 at the very least for pensions. Many pensioners are living in cold homes facing rising energy bills and struggling to make ends meet.”
“I have said it before, and I will say it again, that this is not an environmental policy, it is a fiscal punishment. It disproportionately affects those who can least afford it. It punishes rural communities, low-income households and small businesses. What supports are offered in return? None. There is no fuel rebate. There is little rural transport expansion. There is no meaningful relief for those who have no choice but to drive. This budget also fails to deliver on housing. While €11.3 billion was allocated, the reality is that delivery remains painfully slow. Families are still waiting. Young people are still locked out and dereliction continues to scar our towns. We need direct build programmes, not just schemes and subsidies. There are over 16,000 people homeless and more than 5,000 of these are children.”
“Petrol will go up €1.25 per fill. Gas will go up to nearly €17 per fill. Coal has gone up 90 cent per bag and it will be more again in January. This is not just statistic; it is a crisis. In west Cork and across rural Ireland, people rely on their cars. Public transport is limited or non-existent. Parents drive long distances to schools. Workers commute to towns. Farmers depend on fuel to run machinery. These are not luxuries; they are lifelines, and yet the budget adds to their burden. The carbon tax hike layered on top on excise duty and VAT means that up to 60% to 70% of the costs of every litre of fuel goes back into the Government coffers in taxes and levies. That is €6 out of every €10 taken from the pocket of the working family.”
“We welcome the VAT reduction but will continue to fight for its swift implementation, for fairness and for the survival of the small businesses that make Ireland what it is. The budget does not meet the moment. It does not reflect the hardship faced by ordinary people, especially those in rural Ireland, where the cost of living continues to spiral and where the burden of Government policy is felt most acutely. Let us talk about fuel - a basic necessity for families, workers and farmers. Today, the average price of petrol is €1.74 per litre and diesel is €1.67 per litre. These prices are among the highest in Europe. With the planned carbon tax increase of 2 cent per litre, Ireland is set to become the most expensive country in the EU for diesel. Home heating oil will go up €20 per fill. Car diesel will go up €1.48 per fill.”
“If even a fraction of these businesses shut down, the knock-on effects will be devastating - not just job losses, but the loss of community anchors. These are not faceless corporations but family businesses, corner cafés and village pubs that are live wires of towns and parishes up and down the country. In the budget, the wet pubs have got nothing, which leaves many of them in a dire situation. The only thing they see out of it is the minimum wage has risen so they will have to pay out more. This is a big blow to them. With geopolitical uncertainty threatening foreign direct investment, now is the time to double down on supporting domestic industries. Hospitality and personal service remain among the largest indigenous employers in Ireland.”
“The fuel increase is going through tonight; the VAT decrease should go through tonight as well. I met with café owners in Kerry, salon operators in Dublin and pub owners in Cork. They told me the same thing, namely, they are keeping the doors open but are not taking home a wage. Margins have been decimated by insurance premiums, rates, energy bills, wage demands and supply costs. This so-called temporary measure has become the economic bedrock for many local businesses. Entire enterprises were launched during the life of the 9% VAT rate, particularly across Cork, Kerry and the west coast. They are now clinging on in the hope that some stability will be restored. To those in government who say the VAT cut is too costly, I ask what is the cost of doing nothing.”
“I said plainly this was a necessary pressure-release valve for an industry under immense pressure. Let me be clear that delaying the measure until July 2026 is a mistake. It risks pushing many operators to the brink. We cannot afford to wait. Every day counts when you are trying to keep the lights on. I cannot understand People Before Profit Deputies continuously dismissing this as a non-runner. They keep picking out high-flyers in the industry but the bottom line is that hairdressers, small cafés and small restaurants are in dire trouble. Some 600 of them closed in 2024 and 150 closed in the first three months of this year. People Before Profit Deputies are probably not on the ground like we are; they are probably in a bubble thinking this VAT rate is not welcome. It certainly is but I wish it was going to be delivered straight away.”
“It is asking for fairness, a tax system that reflects reality and a government that understands that working harder should not mean falling further behind. Let us not forget that economic growth must be inclusive. If we leave behind the very people who drive that growth, we risk undermining the social contract that binds us together. The Government's decision to reduce the VAT from 13.5% to 9% for food-led hospitality and personal services is a hard-won victory, one for which I and my colleagues in Independent Ireland have campaigned relentlessly. This is not just a budget line item; it is a lifeline. For months, I have stood in this Chamber and in towns and villages across Ireland warning that, without urgent action, businesses would close, jobs would be lost and communities would be hollowed out.”
“The failure to index tax bands to inflation means that more of their income is pushed into higher tax brackets, reducing take-home pay and punishing hard work. This is bad news for working families. It is bad news for the nurse doing overtime, the teacher taking on extra duties and the small business owner trying to grow. These are the people who keep our country running and they deserve better. There are welcome measures in this budget - increases in social welfare, investment in housing and support for the arts - but, for the average worker earning €40,000 to €60,000 a year, there is no meaningful tax relief, no recognition of the pressures they face and no signal that their contribution is valued. We must ask whether this budget is for everyone or just for some. Middle Ireland is not asking for handouts.”
“One of my constituents after seeing the budget today sent me this message: "Work, work, work, and at the end of the year you are back to where you started." After budget 2026 has been unveiled, many working families across the country are asking a simple question: where is the relief for us? Despite rising wages, soaring rents and relentless inflation, the Government has chosen not to adjust income tax bands. This decision means that middle-income earners - the backbone of our economy - will continue to be taxed more heavily as their earnings rise, even if those increases barely keep pace with the cost of living. We are in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis. Families are struggling to afford groceries, childcare, energy bills and housing. Yet instead of easing the tax burden, the budget leaves them exposed.”
“If the Minister signs off on commitments, she must personally ensure they are delivered on the ground. The Independent Ireland Party will support what is good in the agreement but we will push for faster delivery, fair funding and special protection for rural services because at the end of the day this is not about reports or strategies. It is about patients in west Cork, Limerick or Roscommon being able to walk into their local pharmacy and get the care they need. On another health issue while I have the floor, I would like the Minister to please ensure Ava's protocol will be developed as a national policy, as recommended by the jury at Ava Barry's inquest. I wrote to the Minister about this earlier. I would appreciate her action and assistance in getting Ava's protocol up and running.”
“If the Government does not back them properly, it condemns rural patients to endless travel, higher costs and longer waits. I ask the Minister to build in stronger supports for rural pharmacies, which are doing an incredible job for so many communities. Do not make them an afterthought. What about medicine shortages? Families are going from pharmacy to pharmacy, desperate for essential medicines. The agreement mentions better stock visibility and substitution protocols. That is good, but these must be fast-tracked and not buried in working groups. On accountability, there is no point in signing glossy agreements if the HSE is left unaccountable. The Independent Ireland Party has called for a watchdog with teeth, not another layer of bureaucracy.”
“The agreement falls short in key areas. The timelines are simply too slow. Pharmacists can prescribe for just eight conditions in 2025 and must then wait until 2027 or even 2030 for full authority. Patients do not have the time to wait. The Government boasts of fee uplifts, but what about independent rural pharmacies that are barely surviving? We saw this with the free HRT scheme. Pharmacies were left out of pocket and there was uncertainty for patients while the Department was scrambling at the last minute. We need sustainability guaranteed. Pharmacists must at least break even on every State scheme or services will collapse. Rural GPs are closing. Out-of-hours services are stretched and hospitals are under siege. Pharmacies are often the last health service standing in a town or village.”