Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

What is going on, Acting Chairman? You should initiate an investigation to discover what is happening on the other side of the House. The Government seems to be bereft of imagination or a willingness to accept responsibility for anything, except good news. Who is to blame? Everybody is to blame, except the Government — that is the attitude. Even the media are picking up on this. The Government has fed the media with the same old nonsense time and again. It has done it so often it now believes somebody did this to us. After all, is it not its God-given right to be in government forever? As Dean Martin used to say, "who's to blame?" The Government is to blame.

The Government has retaliated. The first sector it has selected is the public sector which will be beaten first as it was the cause of this crisis. The Government is now involved in a series of punishment beatings. I have no doubt that the budget to be announced on 7 April will be one more punishment beating against the public sector because it was the cause of this crisis, or that is what is being said. The Government will also attack the private sector which has escaped to a certain extent, although it is suffering job losses and taking serious economic hits.

One of the points I cannot understand is that when this crisis was unfolding during the past six or seven years, why the Government did nothing about it. George Lee — fair play to him — was one economist who held up his hands and asked: "What is going on? Something is going on here." Deputies Bruton and Kenny also said it, as did many speakers on this side of the House. However, the Government stated: "Not at all. You are stupid. You do not know what you are talking about. We know better." Although I am only a simple backbencher, even I asked questions.

Seven years ago we asked why the economy was no longer competitive. We asked why our exports were dwindling and why nothing was done to ensure we remained competitive into the future and were told we are a high wage economy and that we are to base our future on the knowledge-based industry. If the knowledge-based industry is to rescue us, the serious dearth of knowledge on the opposite side of the House means it will be a long time before that happens.

I cannot in the time available deal adequately with this subject.

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