Budget ‘all about using borrowed money to buy votes’

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin has not presented an accurate health estimate in three budgets, it has been claimed.

Fianna Fáil spokesman on public expenditure and reform Seán Fleming alleged Mr Howlin had “failed to grapple with” the black hole in the health budget with the former minister. “The new Minister has got the better of you as well,” he told him.

Speaking during the Dáil debate on the budget, the Laois- Offaly TD claimed “we will be back here next year with a supplementary estimate for health like we have done with every other budget the Government has introduced”.

“Not one health estimate that has stood the test of 12 months has been brought in since you came into office.”

He asked the Minister: “Why do you bring in an estimate year in year out that you can’t stand over? ”

‘Black hole‘

He said there was a €460 million “black hole” in the budget and the Minister “will not tell us today how it will be fixed”.

Last year’s health estimate was €12.7 billion; in 2015 it would be €13.079 billion, rising to €13.29 billion by 2017.

Mr Fleming said that was a 1.6 per cent increase over three years and questioned how anyone could think the health service could be fixed with a 0.5 per cent increase annually, including €460 million in “income-generation”.

He said that in microscopic print in the budget document it stated savings measures of €130 million and “income-generation measures” of €330 million “are being progressed”, and details would be provided in the revised estimates, which Mr Fleming said would happen in the new year.

He added people with private health insurance will be charged €400 in emergency departments, whether they are on a trolley or in a chair.

He asked: “Why do we have to wait two months for an explanation?”

He noted the Minister for Health had said “there might be a nominal fee for the free GP card” and asked how much the nominal fee would be.

He said there was a “black hole” in last year’s health budget and the HSE had blown it out of the water within 24 hours.

Earlier Fianna Fáil finance spokesman Michael McGrath claimed the budget “is all about using borrowed money to buy votes”.

He said the key element in Michael Noonan’s budget was his income tax proposals. The Minister for Finance had decided to change income tax and “he has made a mess of it”.

He said anyone on an income of €32,000 would benefit by €174 a year, but faced water charges of up to €400. But an individual on €70,000 a year would benefit by €748, which was four times greater, he said.

The Cork South-Central TD also claimed Ireland’s certainty around corporation tax was “beginning to crumble” because of changes the Minister for Finance had made to the regime.