Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)

The Government is silent on those issues, including a competitiveness action plan and an anti-inflation strategy. They have no commitment to change, including competition and deregulation, anywhere in the public sector. That is the core problem: they continue to peddle the snake oil of a programme for Government issued last year, from which €40 billion in cumulative tax expectations have been wiped out. The dreams of the programme for Government were built on that €40 billion but it has now been wiped out and there has not been a whimper from the Government. Ministers will not own up to the reality that the promises made to pupils, the sick and people struggling with crime are now baseless. We need a bit of reality. Ministers should realise that we are in a new situation. Resources will be scarce in the coming years so we must cut our cloth to what is available.

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