John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

The unemployment figures released today show the unprecedented economic situation in which we find ourselves. By now, everybody knows someone — be they a relative, friend or neighbour — who has recently lost their job as unemployment of 9% reaches record numbers in absolute terms. As a small open economy that is part of a European currency, traditional monetary instruments are not open to us. Ireland's eventual economic recovery will also be reliant on a global economic recovery.

We in Ireland have to implement policies and measures that will place us in a position to capitalise on that global economic recovery. We need to move away from an over reliance on construction and back to export-led industry and services. We need to ensure those new industries are sustainable, and that is why the Green Party in government is advancing the green economy and the green-tech sector as an essential element in our recovery.

First and foremost, however, we must restore our public finances to more sustainable levels if we are to repair our economy, restore confidence and restore employment growth. We are now borrowing €4,500 for every man, woman and child in the State. That €18 billion in borrowing is the equivalent of a third of current spending. The interest we will pay on that, €4.5 billion, is the equivalent of a third of the entire income tax take. That level of borrowing is not sustainable and consequently current levels of Government spending are not sustainable.

The package of measures announced by the Government yesterday is a significant step along the difficult and arduous road towards restoring our public finances. More difficult decisions on expenditure will be required next year and in 2011 and 2012. I know the measures announced yesterday are very difficult. They are painful and unpalatable in many cases, but they have to be introduced if the economy is to survive and prosper.

As shown last week in the framework document, there is unanimous agreement that public spending must be reduced by at least €2 billion in a year. It would have been impossible to make that reduction without a significant change in our public service pension system.

Public service employees deliver excellent services across this country, from our hospitals to our schools, Garda stations and council offices. They are hard working and as a group they earn their salaries and wages, but if we are to make the necessary adjustments, there is no option but to take significant steps to reduce the overall net expenditure on our €20 billion public pay roll.

The changes to public service pensions will deliver savings over a calendar year of €1.4 billion. I appreciate the sacrifice that will be made by each and every one of the 300,000 public service employees in this country. Nevertheless, if the changes are not made those very public service jobs could be placed in jeopardy in the long term.

The decision to reduce the early childhood payment was also a difficult one to make; it was necessary but its effect is minimised. The payment will end six months earlier at the age of five. The total annual payment has also been reduced. The decision to maintain the payment reflects my party's concern that parents of young children should continue to get additional support in order to give them a choice on how they care for their children. Parents with children under five will continue to receive €3,000 a year in child care payments.

The reduction in overseas aid was also a difficult decision to make. I acknowledge the concerns of the Irish NGOs, but the reduction has been minimised to €95 million. Ireland will still be the sixth largest per capita donor in the world. Our budget for overseas development aid will be just €4 million euro short of €800 million this year, which is €300 million more than in 2004. While our per capita contribution is less than some of the Scandinavian countries, it is still larger than many of our European neighbours such as Britain and Germany.

In terms of spending reductions, the package is balanced. The measures will, I hope, minimise the impact on lower income households and insulate the most vulnerable. The alternatives to the spending reductions announced yesterday would have had significant impacts on low income households. That is not the Green Party way of thinking.

However, what has been absent from the analysis is comment on some of the positive elements in the package in terms of a reorientation of investment by the Government. This package will divert capital investment towards labour intensive programmes, which will create green jobs, maintain the construction sector and pursue climate change goals. This capital investment will secure and create thousands of badly needed jobs in the construction sector this year. For example, the water services investment programme will see €560 million spent on water infrastructure, 19% more than in 2008. More than 4,500 jobs will be sustained and by the end of this year there will be 150 projects under construction. The green capital programme will deliver and create thousands more jobs through a greatly expanded insulation scheme for houses and buildings around the country.

I know we are asking a lot of the general public. However, I, as Green Party leader, would not ask the public to accept this package if I did not believe it to be absolutely necessary. I also believe that we here in Leinster House must show political leadership. The Government is determined to play its part, along with the Oireachtas, in reducing the costs of our democratic and political systems. We aim to achieve substantial savings in 2009 through a range of changes in Government and Oireachtas funding.

The Oireachtas Commission will be asked to contribute to this process, and we invite the co-operation of all political parties and Independent Deputies, to show clear leadership across the political system. In this context, the approach to foreign visits of Oireachtas committees, the funding of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission and the systems of remuneration, pensions, expenses and allowances for Members of the Oireachtas will be considered. The costs of discharging ministerial functions in support of effective Government will also be reviewed.

Speaking personally, I do not believe last month's expenses reform proposals from the all-party Oireachtas Commission are nearly sufficient to show that leadership. A vouched expenses system merely tinkers at the edges of the significant spending reforms needed in the Oireachtas. We in Government need, more than anything else, to send a signal to the general public that corporate greed and responsibility will not be tolerated. This is the reason the Green Party wants to see new measures to deal with the remuneration of the senior management of our banks and to ensure that those who have brought our banking system into disrepute and caused untold damage to our international reputation are held fully to account.

These are the most challenging economic times we have faced in this country in living memory. The global phenomenon makes that challenge even greater. I agree with Deputy Enda Kenny that things have gone beyond political point scoring. I said that a fortnight ago, at the 90th anniversary of the Dáil celebration. We as politicians must be honest, open and truthful about the extent of the problems we face, the fact that there are no easy solutions and that we are all going to experience some form of financial pain. That is as true for the Opposition benches as it is for the Government.

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