Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

I echo the comments of my colleagues. It is disgraceful that only one lone ranger is on the Government benches. It is appalling, given the economic crisis we face. It is high time the Government told some truths about the economic freefall in which the country finds itself. It is past time for recriminations, admonishments and blame and it is time for Government Members to leave behind the self-pity and self-exoneration that has become the mantra of this Administration in recent months. Does any Government Member have the courage to explain to the people the scale of our problems? I hope the Minister, who has joined us, does. More important, does any Government Member have the vision, drive and determination to set out a path for recovery? I fear the answer is negative on both counts.

The current meltdown being experienced by business and workers throughout the State and economic forecasts, which are frightening, need to be examined to put in context the current economic position. Ireland is on the precipice of catastrophe and we now need, more than ever, strong political direction to lead us safely from the edge. The facts, about which I hope the Minister will be aware, are stark. The economy is set to shrink by at least 5% this year. Even in the depths of recession in the 1980s, the economy shrank by only approximately 1.5% annually. The scale and rate of decline is utterly startling. The number unemployed will increase to at least 450,000 while some are predicting it will be higher by the end of this year, which is more than twice the number signing on when the Taoiseach took up office last year.

In the face of such devastating conditions, one could reasonably expect that a government would step up to the mark and set out an economic recovery plan as a matter of urgency and priority. One could at the very minimum expect a government to attempt to step up to the mark, irrespective of how incompetent and paralysed it might be. However, in the case of our Government, we see nothing but denial, delusion and a short sighted fixation on tinkering with the public finances. Deputy Coveney referred to the tinkering, which amounts to €2 billion, but this is the tip of the iceberg.

The majority of the people are reasonable and intelligent and they are willing to do their bit for the economy. If the Taoiseach had the courage and character to set out the scale of the challenges that lie ahead, the people would respond but, instead, we are faced with the hyperbole of a Government, which still insists on referring to "adjustments", "economic indicators" and other jargon that means nothing to ordinary families. People want the truth in plain language. Any Member who believes we can spend our way out of this recession is living in a fantasy land. It is time to get real and the people want politicians and the Government to get real.

The Taoiseach owes it to the people to be honest about the cuts that will have to be imposed and the tax increases that are on the table. He should show some respect for them by announcing an emergency budget, for which Fine Gael has called, to introduce the cuts and tax increases, which inevitably will be required to bridge the huge gap between revenue and expenditure. No one will appreciate the postponement by the Government, for political purposes, of this urgent task until after the local and European elections. On the contrary, with some straight talking, the people will accept the necessary measures as being in the national interest.

As this is largely a self-made mess on the part of the Government, hard working people will not endure massive cuts and tax increases unless they are integrated into a long-term strategy to get us out of the current economic mess. That is what is lacking. We have not been given a vision for the reintroduction of competition into the economy, the creation of new jobs and so on. We are not seeing a long-term strategy and people are finding it difficult to buy into this, as is the Opposition.

See this speech in context