Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Professor Ahearne noted in response to Senator MacSharry that in the period leading up to the 2007 election none of the parties recommended policies to stop the property bubble. He also stated that booms were very popular and that no party would have been elected it if had recommended policies to stop the property bubble. Will Professor Ahearne clarify the matter by indicating which parties he was referring to? Did he mean all the parties? I am only familiar with the 2007 election manifesto of the party I represent, which referred to high-risk 100% mortgages, ending property tax incentives and intervening in a market that was in crisis. I am wondering, therefore, to which parties Professor Ahearne was referring. Does he include the Socialist Party, the Fine Gael Party, the Green Party and others? He made a very broad statement on a matter that the inquiry may address subsequently as part of its terms of reference.