Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe, and compliment him on doing a great job, although he might not get much credit from across the floor.

Sometimes when we are considering an important Bill such as this, we forget about its principal aims and refer to parish pumps and byroads. It is no harm for us, therefore, to advert to the main aims of the Finance Bill 2008, as outlined by the Minister for Finance yesterday. These include supporting enterprise and innovation, advancing sustainable development and ensuring a fairer tax system. I am sure the public is very pleased that we have somebody in the finance portfolio who not only has a steady hand but also a cool head. He does not listen to the rhetoric being expounded daily regarding intervention in the financial markets, not only in Ireland but internationally.

I am glad the Minister is a man of competence who understands what markets are about. He does not make loose statements or comments that will interfere with or do damage to Ireland internationally. This was brought home to me in a very straightforward way last week when the Governor of the Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland and the chief executive of the Financial Regulator appeared before the Joint Committee on Finance and the Public Service, which I chair. The clear message of these witnesses, who are independent of the Government, was that the measures taken and comments made by the Minister for Finance are to be welcomed.

When we consider what is occurring internationally, we note the panic measures in the United States. Most of the economic problems in the European Union and western world have surfaced on account of sub-prime lending in the United States. We do not have a problem with sub-prime lending here, as announced by the Governor of the Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland last week. He stated our financial institutions are not open to the problem. It is very important that this is known and stated in this House, but it was not stated by the media. The Governor stated that the measures taken in the budget and the facts that we have such high employment and are not open to the sub-prime lending problem in the United States are important to Ireland's financial stability. We should base our statements today on this fact.

Ireland is a small country with an open economy, and it galls me to realise people try to do it down in international finance houses. This is the nearest thing to financial treason that one can get. It is time for us to take a stand and state this country is sound. It is sound on many footings, it has the second lowest debt ratio in the European Union, it has nearly full employment and, in the past ten years, it has had one of the highest growth rates in the western world. These are the foundations on which the country is built.

People comment on the slowdown in the construction of residential housing and suggest the whole world will fall down around the shoes of Ireland. Construction accounts for 20% of our overall gross domestic product. I refer to all commercial and residential development. Is there anybody in this House who will tell me that construction in the commercial sector is slowing down?

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