Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)

Listening to a number of speakers, it is obvious that some of the people from the Government are trying to rewrite the economic history of this country. In 1977, when Fianna Fáil won a landslide victory in the general election, the national debt stood at €5.370 billion. When it left office in 1982, the debt had risen to €14.816 billion, an increase of €9.446 billion. The foreign debt inherited by the Fine Gael-led Government in 1983 was €18.274 billion. By 1986, it had increased by €8.97 billion to €27.244 billion. The rate of increase declined significantly under the then Government which had inherited a wretched economy. I was a Senator at the time and I am glad Garret FitzGerald, Peter Barry and other members of that Government are receiving recognition for their contribution to the country.

In 1977 , I recall, even though I was not in politics then, that when Jack Lynch was elected Taoiseach he acknowledged the good health of the public finances. It must also be remembered that Fianna Fáil was in power for five and a half years during the 1980s, while Fine Gael was in power for four and a half years. All parties must share responsibility for what happened during the 1980s. Some Members have a selective memory of the period, blaming one particular party for all the problems.

The last time Fine Gael was in Government between 1994 and 1997, some commentators suggested the party would not be able to take over the reins of power. I am infuriated by this unfair statement coming from people who should know better. Between 1994 and 1997, under the Bruton-Spring Government, real GDP grew by 10.1%, as opposed to 5.7% between 1998 and 2004. Inflation stood at 1.5% between 1994 and 1997, but increased by 2.2% during 1998 to 2004. The rainbow Government was producing 1,000 jobs a week; the current Government is responsible for the loss of 635 jobs a day over the past month. If one is going to match the economic performances of Governments in the past 20 years, it must be acknowledged that Fine Gael made a positive contribution in this regard. When the history of the Celtic tiger is written, this should recognised.

Personal borrowing has taken over from State borrowing, most of which was for house purchases. Every house built was worth €100,000 to the Exchequer. In one year housing output came to 80,000 units, which is worth €8 billion. This year, only 25,000 units will be built, leaving €2.5 billion. It is obvious where the money has gone. People are up to their tonsils in debt.

A firm commitment was made to replace the Naval Service's three main vessels, LE Aoife, LE Emer and LE Aisling, over the next three years. Will these go to tender soon?

Last week, Simon Brouder gave a good analysis in The Kerryman of the county's economic position. He stated:

Data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the Central Bank, housing surveys and Kerry County Council for the first quarter of 2008, all show a marked downturn in Kerry compared with the same period just 12 months ago.

The most obvious place to begin is with the jobless figures and, in the past year, Kerry has seen the number of people receiving social welfare benefits surge upwards by 34 per cent.

Last month live register figures reached their highest level in ten years with the number of signing on reaching 8,179 in the county, with half of these in Tralee alone...

In the last 12 months the number of planning applications made to Kerry County Council dropped by 49 per cent; the number of new house starts plummeted by 57 per cent; and one-off house completions plunged by 34 per cent. . .

Planning applications from developers of multiple houses projects across Kerry have decreased by 53 per cent. In the first quarter of 2007, developers applied for permission to build 405 multihouse developments in Kerry; in quarter one of 2008 this dropped to just 126.

House prices have also seen a stark drop . . . The sale of new cars in May 2008 was down by 29 per cent on May 2007 across all makes of car including luxury cars.

Overall, high-street spending in Kerry is down considerably. Most alarming is that:

According to figures from the Central Bank and Cori, Kerry has the second lowest level of disposable income in the State, at €17,000 per person annually. Some 17 per cent of Kerry's population, almost 24,000 people, are now living below the official poverty line.

I appeal to you, a Cheann Comhairle, as the most powerful politician in County Kerry, to ensure that projects such as Kenmare hospital, which is very dear to you — I have seen announcements by him and Deputy Jackie Healy-Rae about it — and the new school for Ballybunion are not shelved. In that case, the contractor is ready to start building. The day before the general election last year, the then Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, announced construction of the Castleisland bypass would commence at the beginning of this year and the money would be provided by the NRA. I hope none of these projects will be cut back. I appeal to the Ceann Comhairle to use his influence in this regard.

Kerry did not experience a Celtic tiger like the rest of the country. When one takes off from Kerry airport and travels to Dublin Airport, one feels one is landing in a different country.

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