Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

If there is one thing we should all learn from the past, it is that the worst policy of all and the one which causes the most damage to people is to pretend that tough action can be taken without people feeling the impact.

The only way to provide quality public services and to maximise support for the less well off is to get us back to strong public finances as quickly as feasible and take the actions required to achieve that objective. With revenues down €6.5 billion this year, it would simply not be responsible if we did not adapt the level of public services being provided. Policy changes had to be considered and had to take account of the fact that the Government will have less revenue next year than was anticipated before the international downturn hit us.

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