Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

The Taoiseach has made a very significant acknowledgement to the House this morning that while the programme for Government exists on paper, it no longer exists in reality because it was negotiated and agreed on the assumption that there would be a 4.5% growth rate, which is clearly not the case. Despite the commitments in the programme for Government to reduce tax and class sizes, they are being increased. It is an entirely different situation. The programme for Government is important in two respects. It tells the public what the Government intends to do in its planned four or five years in office. Programmes for Government also tend to be particularly important for the minority party in government. The programme for Government is the deal, the compromise parties make before they enter Government with each other. It is the contract between the parties.

When this programme for Government was being negotiated the Green Party took it very seriously because at one critical point the negotiations broke down. If the programme for Government no longer applies in reality, and that is the position no matter how it is spun, what is the understanding between the two parties about what this Government will do? Has the Taoiseach agreed with the Green Party some new programme for Government in these new times and, if so, will that programme for Government be published?

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