Shane McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)

Today I walked down Kildare Street to watch our students, some of them my nephews, nieces and neighbours' children, march to this House. While a small group infiltrated them to give their protest a bad name, all were in cheerful humour marching to seek a fair chance in third level education for themselves and their parents and against the re-introduction of third level fees.

If we are going to bail out the banks, the people who Deputy Thomas Byrne referred to in our constituency must also be bailed out. I know his anger about this matter because I have come across the same issue. The people in question cannot make it. They have €350,000 mortgages on houses now worth €200,000 and many of them know it will be almost impossible to pay for their children's university education if fees are re-introduced.

Fairness is what is needed and this is where the Garda comes into the equation. It is argued we should not interfere with the Garda but it is also up to this House to introduce laws that ensure fairness. It is not fair the people who caused our banking problems can sun themselves abroad. It is not fair they can hold on to their houses worth €6 million when the parents of many students cannot even feed themselves at times.

The former Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, knew his policies were wrong. Instead of standing up to them and protecting Ireland's fiscal position when it began to slip, the then Minister for Finance, Deputy Cowen, did what he was told. I had the height of respect for the Minister for Finance, Deputy Brian Lenihan, when first appointed. I no longer do because of the bank guarantee he introduced in this House 15 months ago. When the banks came to him seeking that guarantee that day, he should have asked them how much they had given out and how much they had on deposit. This was an answer he could easily have received in one hour with modern accounting technology. However, by sitting on the guarantee and not requesting that information for the past 15 months, every small business has been taken to the floor by the banks because their credit has dried up. We are now at a point of no return and no one wants the International Monetary Fund running our country.

Fianna Fáil Members should not follow their leader into the hole as they did in the past with Charles Haughey and Deputy Bertie Ahern. They must acknowledge that no international market will give us a penny as long as the people who caused these economic problems are still in office. The last three Fianna Fáil speakers addressed today's High Court judgment on the Donegal South-West by-election. It should never have gone to court in the first place. Will the four by-elections be called now? Why does the Government not call a general election to clean the decks and seek approval for its four-year plan? That is what the people want.

Most Members can get on all right. All the students protesting outside today wanted was a fair chance for themselves and their parents. If we are going to bail out the banks, we must also help those caught in negative equity, like the parents of those students protesting today. Otherwise, we are going nowhere.

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