Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

Every one of us who serves in Government and on these benches hears what the people are saying.

The people need reassurance that we are on the right path. We are. They want to know that the pain we are enduring will herald better times. It will. They want to know that the Government is sure and confident of the decisions it is taking and that it is taking them in the best interests of the people. It is. They want to know that the Government is committed to bringing us back to growth and recovery as soon as possible. It is. They want to know the Government will protect and help those most in need and the most vulnerable during the economic recession. It will. They want to know the Government is ensuring the banking systems starts to work again in the interests of the people, and that the scandals and abuses we have seen in the banking sector can never happen again. It is doing that.

Deputy Kenny said yesterday that we in Government are not prepared to listen to what the Opposition said and read the documents it has produced. The supreme irony is that we have read the documents. I have read every one of them from cover to cover and all they have done for me is highlight the blatant and irreconcilable differences in policy between the two parties who would seek to form a Government. Fine Gael calls for more spending cuts and a bigger reduction in the deficit, but resolutely refuses to identify the public services and public sector jobs it would cut. The Labour Party calls for increases in expenditure and for deficit spending, without saying where it will get the billions to do so.

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