Government does not know how to help itself

THE cost of living is an issue for more people than immigration, at least according to an Amárach/Irish Daily Mail poll, the findings of which appeared in this newspaper last Wednesday. The former came in with a 69% rating, the latter at 21%.

Maybe it came as a surprise to some but it shouldn’t have. Many people are untouched by the refugee issue, especially if the locations of asylum seekers is nowhere near where they live.

The cost-of-living pressures apply to nearly everyone – other than those with very large incomes or big savings on which to fall back. Although electricity and gas suppliers announced price cuts this week, they don’t come into effect until March 1 when the worst of the cold weather will be long gone – allowing suppliers to pocket big income.

However, the key point for voters is that even after those cuts, the price of heating and lighting your home will still be about 80% higher than it was in early 2022, before Russia invaded Ukraine. Will voters be thankful that the bills aren’t as big as they were or be more mindful that they are still higher than they can afford?

Impact

The Government has tried to mitigate the impact, for all the little thanks it has received, at least according to opinion polls.

Last year it reduced the burden for each household, irrespective of its income, by €600. This year it will be €450.

Some commentators have suggested that it should not have done so and that it was a reckless use of State funds for limited electoral support as it wasn’t targeted according to income

However, even after these subsidies kick in, there are many people who are still in arrears.

To heighten the cost-of-living concerns, it seems most unlikely that there will be any interest rate cuts before the summer.

It will be a long time before people are paying on their monthly mortgage what they were forking out before the Russian violence stoked rampant inflation.

Rents remain prohibitively high, taking too much of many people’s monthly incomes, leaving little over for other bills, let alone treats – although the foreign holiday business seems to remain strong.

Overall inflation may be moderating, but prices are still going up and food price inflation continues at a higher rate than the overall index. There may be little that the Government can do about all of this, but it is the nature of many voters to think that it should and to believe the Opposition politicians who claim to have magical solutions.

But if ‘it’s the economy stupid’ still holds as the ultimate political saw, there is no doubt that immigration is coming up fast as the major political disruptor, especially with the local elections looming into view.

An Ireland Thinks poll last week suggested migration will be the number-one issue for Irish voters in the European elections: 37% of respondents indicated ‘tackling migration’ as their most important issue for these polls.

Belatedly, the Government is taking action to make it more difficult for Ukrainians, for example, to claim emergency housing and cash benefits from February 1.

Ironically, new figures show Ukrainians have eagerly moved into the Irish workforce to provide for themselves.

The real issue for a small but growing number is the presence of those seeking asylum from other non-EU countries – not Ukraine. Make of that what you will.

The Government doesn’t seem to know how to help itself.

In Roscrea, Co. Tipperary, it took possession of a working hotel but then announced the intended purchase of a long-closed facility that will be reopened as a ‘community’ hotel. Which raises the obvious question: why not purchase the latter unit and use it for refugees, while leaving the owners of Racket Hall to continue doing their normal business?

Shortage

Similarly, the Government talks of funds being available (and sometimes drawn down) by towns that have accepted large numbers of refugees.

It is offering more money now, but at this stage, who actually believes that this money will bring gardaí, nurses, teachers, dentists, doctors and social workers into these areas when there is already a major shortage of people in all of those professions across the entire country?

The Government’s defence is that the scale of the problem could not have been anticipated, but that is only partly true.

We have known for years about increased migration because of the climate emergency.

We’ve also debated for over a decade the slowness in assessing applications and sorting out people by either allowing to remain or be deported.

And that is why the Government is increasingly vulnerable politically: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has made claims about deportation that do not stand up to scrutiny – orders are made but are not enforced – and while he is technically correct to say that we do not have an open borders policy, the free travel between the two jurisdictions on this island has its impact.

Even people who believe we should accommodate as many refugees as we can get frustrated when they hear things like that. Especially when they are struggling to pay their own bills.