Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

——for the hard times facing almost everyone, particularly those on low incomes or who have lost their employment, irrespective of whether they are public or private sector workers. We resent Fianna Fáil's attempt to drive a wedge between people who work in the public service and those in the private sector. I do not have to tell the House that many teachers, nurses, gardaí and other public servants are married to carpenters, bricklayers and shop and factory workers. It is not like South Africa under apartheid, two separate corrals of people who never meet one another. We reject Fianna Fáil's vision of a divided Ireland where public and private sector workers will fight it out.

Tomorrow, I will discuss the levy's unfairness in detail. Most of the public sector workers who I know are realists and know that sacrifices must be made. What contribution will the Government demand of the bankers who have brought the country to the point of economic ruin? What of the tax exiles who leave this country in their helicopters at five minutes to midnight to secure another tax-free day in this jurisdiction? What will the Minister of State demand from them? Does the Irish passport carry a commitment to paying tax and contributing to this country?

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