Ar an gcéad dul síos, on behalf of the Rural Independents I wish a speedy recovery to an Teachta McDonald.

I challenge the Taoiseach about the possibility of abolishing the universal social charge, USC. It is worth remembering that at the height of the Celtic tiger in 2006 the Exchequer was awash with property-based tax receipts and the then Government reported a budget surplus of €5.1 billion. We have stories today of the surplus possibly reaching €22.5 billion by 2024 and 2025. Sadly, there is little trust in the Government's ability to make wise decisions regarding these substantial funds. It is highly likely that these record tax receipts will be squandered. It is time that we do something for the individuals throughout the country who have made such efforts by considering the abolition of the USC.

I remind the Taoiseach of a Fine Gael manifesto which boldly stated that the party would abolish the USC. That was not today or yesterday, and Fine Gael has reneged on that promise totally. The manifesto in question was issued was prior to the 2016 general election. It is time for the Government to abolish this inherently unfair tax, which is imposed on a person's total income without many of the exemptions available with income tax. It is an inherently unfair tax. Everybody knows that. The rates range from less than 2% for income up to €23,000 to 4.5% for income up to between €23,000 and €70,000 and 8% on income above €70,000. For instance, a constituent in Tipperary earning €50,000 a year will pay €1,497 in 2023. A self-employed constituent with an income of €100,000 will pay €4,795 via the USC in 2023. I call on the Taoiseach to honour previous commitments and promises and utilise the record tax revenues to provide ordinary workers with relief by abolishing the USC.

They deserve this. They have put their shoulder to the wheel. We see people outside the House today from the early childcare sector and we saw people last year from nursing homes. Across the whole of society people are struggling. We saw the Government introduce little incentives to help them with the cost of energy. They really need a break from this punitive tax that was meant to be a temporary measure. Fine Gael, in a blaze of glory, promised it would be abolished before the 2016 election. It is time to honour its promises, or do election promises mean anything? The public are well aware of this now and they see. I challenge the Taoiseach, his Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, the Minister for Finance and his coalition partners to get rid of this punitive tax. People are dizzy from listening to all the figures of windfall tax from corporations and so on. The Government must look after na daoine beaga, the ordinary people who carry the can and are sick and tired of scandals such as the hurricane blowing across our public service today. Many good people work in RTÉ and across the public service and all walks of life. They are tired of the Government's promises and empty rhetoric. They are tired to listening to all this talk about massive windfalls as they still struggle.

I appreciate the fact that people in Ireland pay a lot of tax, whether it is income tax, USC or PRSI. In budgets over the last number of years we have reduced the burden of taxation on people. In some budgets we reduced the USC, in other budgets we reduced income tax. We intend to do that in the forthcoming budget in October. There will be a package. The exact composition of that package is yet to be determined but it will mean reductions in the amount of tax people have to pay. That is an important commitment that the Government made and that we will honour. The programme for Government says we will index tax credits and tax bands so that when people get a pay rise, they do not see half of that lost in income tax, USC and PRSI. That is the commitment we made in the programme for Government, one we will honour in the forthcoming budget. It is not the intention of the Government to abolish the USC. It brings in €5.3 billion a year. Notwithstanding the surplus we have, a tax package of that size and nature would not be appropriate. It would fuel inflation and endanger the public finances into the future.

It is important to point out that when the USC was introduced by Brian Lenihan a long time ago, it replaced two existing income levies. The Deputy will recall the health levy, which had been around for about 20 years, and the income levy, which had been around for some time. People often take the view that it was a new tax. It was actually the health levy and the income levy, which had been around for a long time, combined, and then it was increased. We have reduced it somewhat since then. It is a progressive tax in that those who earn the most pay the most. Those on the lowest incomes are exempt. Unlike income tax, there are very few ways to avoid it. The various reliefs and tax breaks that apply to income tax do not apply to USC. On the commitments my party made in 2016, that was quite some time ago. We did not win that election. There has been another election since then. In the 2020 election we committed to getting to the point where people did not have to pay the highest rate of income tax until they earned €50,000 and would only pay the highest rate on income above €50,000. We have made a huge amount of progress getting to that point, up to €40,000 now, and we hope to make further progress in further budgets.

I find the reply very lethargic and squeamish. Fine Gael has had several budgets since. It was in government after the 2016 election. The disregard it has for ordinary people is shocking but people looking in can see that Fine Gael is not interested in ordinary working people. It has no time for them. It is the landed gentry party, big business here now, in a whirlwind talking about all the taxes. It is pathetic. Fine Gael has had several budgets since 2016 and made no effort to reduce this punitive tax or get rid of it. It was a temporary measure. I am old enough to remember the PMPA scandal and the temporary measure that came in then. The people outside have copped on to the Government and they do not need RTÉ to tell them. They can see themselves, in other media, the truth of what it going on, that the Government wants to screw the ordinary people and get into bed with the big shots in big business. The ordinary people make up the vast majority of normal families in this country who want to put the work in, put their shoulder to the wheel, educate themselves and house themselves. Fine Gael wants to punish them and keep them down.

In numerous budgets, in the Fianna Fáil supported confidence and supply arrangement since 2016 and in the programme for Government with the Green Party and Fianna Fáil the Taoiseach has made no effort to honour his election promises, blatant promises. People see them for what they are, namely, blatant, naked promises to the people to win votes. Well, he are out of luck this time. The people have copped on and will let him know what they think.

I thank the Deputy and call the Taoiseach to conclude.

That is an interesting speech but it is a load of rubbish, quite frankly. Let me tell the Deputy what we have done for all people, ordinary and extraordinary, over the past three years-----

We led Ireland through the pandemic, saving thousands of lives and hundreds of thousands of jobs at all levels. We helped families and business with the cost of living.

Does the Taoiseach want to take credit for that?

We have given them unprecedented financial support, in particular small businesses and families who needed it most. We have reduced the cost of childcare-----

We have reduced the cost of healthcare and the cost of going to school for everyone with free schoolbooks in September. We have reduced the cost of childcare for everyone. We have improved patient outcomes. We now have one of the longest life expectancies in the European Union. We have full employment for only the second time in our history. We have strengthened workers' rights. We are building more social housing than in any year since the 1970s-----

We now have 700 first-time buyers drawing down their mortgages every week and we have secured an agreement with the British Government in regard to Northern Ireland. What on earth has Deputy McGrath done in his political career to help anyone?

He ran away. You ran away from Fianna Fáil, Mattie.

Does the Taoiseach want a medal?