Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

I have the good fortune to follow Deputy Rabbitte. I am also fortunate to have been a Member of the House for a long time. I was elected in 1977 at a time when a coalition Government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party struggled to confront probably the worst economic crisis since the Second World War, namely, the oil crisis. In June 1977, the Government handed over a country which had weathered the crisis, was back on an even keel and was, comparatively speaking, in a very good condition to the Fianna Fáil Party, which had won a general election through flagrant bribery in its manifesto.

I recall sitting on these benches when the late George Colley announced at the end of his budget speech that the total amount of borrowing and expenditure he was pumping into an already recovering economy amounted to 13% of GDP. His announcement was met by a round of applause from economically ignorant and illiterate Fianna Fáil backbench Deputies, who included one P. Flynn. Two years later, in 1979, the period in which the country had to learn to live within its means commenced under the then Taoiseach, Mr. Charles "Charvet" Haughey.

We were here before 30 years ago when Fianna Fáil brought the country to the verge of bankruptcy. It took three elections, one in 1981 and two in 1982, and a long, slow, difficult march to bring back some degree of economic sanity. The long march was completed in the late 1980s and, as the Taoiseach who was one of his party's team at the time will recall, there was not one bit of constructive opposition from the Fianna Fáil Party benches.

If one fasts forward from 1979 to now, one sees that we are back where we started. What kind of economic illiteracy informs the Taoiseach's party which has been in government for the past 12 years? There is no doubt the Taoiseach, who was Minister for Finance for four years, including at this time last year, ignored the professional advice which is given discreetly and confidentially within the traditions of the Department of Finance. He also ignored all the independent economic commentators. While he listened to the polite words of the Governor of the Central Bank as he chastised the various financial institutions and advised them not to be so reckless in their lending policies, effective action was not taken.

In presenting the budget, the Government has provided a narrative which suggests it had nothing to do with the current crisis which came over the mountain top by surprise. The Government is outsourcing ideas by establishing task forces for this or that issue and hoping for great things.

The Government seeks public service reform and has established another task force on the issue. The strategic management initiative has long since been buried; God knows where and with what results. Let us consider, however, what the Government has done to the public service, which has served this country well. One of the Taoiseach's colleagues, his predecessor as Minister for Finance, abused the confidentiality of the budgetary process to announce a mass deportation and decentralisation of civil servants without the slightest consultation. So much for social partnership. Not only can we not afford the cost of the decentralisation process but we will not fully know its benefits in terms of the offices and buildings which happened to become available for the offices which happened to be decentralised around the country. Some day, if the files are thrown open and the details are made known, some researchers may tell us a story which makes present cronyism and the Galway tent seem very innocent.

It is worse than that, however. The Government expects loyalty and dedicated service from civil servants. The current Minister for Health and Children sacked the Secretary General of the Department of Health and Children because her predecessor and his advisers and staff, as opposed to his officials, failed to read the legal advice on the nursing home issue from the Southern Health Board. How can the Government honestly expect to secure co-operation, trust and motivation from those whom it treats with contempt and on whom it apportions blame?

The Taoiseach will recall the slogan, "Welcome to Parlon country". This budget does not have the sense of urgency or planning required to get us out of our current position. For as long as the Government remains in denial of its central role in the current problem, it will remain part of the problem. Not once has it said it was sorry or admitted it was wrong. From that very bench last June the Taoiseach said we should stop talking down the economy. Does he recall that? Does he have any sense of remorse? Does he have any sense that he has been in government for 12 years and this is where we are now? In 1997 Ireland was the second most competitive economy of the 15 European Union countries. We are now just marginally ahead of Italy. God save us. That is what the Government has done to this country.

Children who lived in this city and in rural parts of Offaly 100 years ago got out of slums in the cities and cottages with no sanitation and walked to schools and into buildings which were sound, solid and brick built with proper slate roofs and decent fireplaces. If one fast forwards through 12 years of Fianna Fáil prosperity, what do we have? Some 500,000 pupils in primary schools leave their homes in the mornings, in many cases passing two or three cars in the driveway if they are not being driven to school. What do they find when they get there? One tenth of those 500,000 pupils find prefabs. We have gone from stone buildings at the end of the 19th century to prefabs.

The Government does not have a clue what is the condition of the school stock nor does the Department. A total of 100,000 children, some of whom were born this morning, will be knocking on school doors in four years time and the Government and Department do not have a clue how they will be accommodated. Yet it appears the Taoiseach takes pleasure in the management of the economy by this incompetent and disgraceful disregard for the future. Reports are quoted which state we will be a knowledge-based economy and our graduate numbers will increase from 55% to 70%. The Government has not provided decent classrooms for our children and has not shown in this document that it could put construction workers back to work building these for the children who could create the knowledge economy that will get us out of here. The Taoiseach should, along with the Ministers of State, resign on 21 April.

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