Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

If anyone disagreed or made any critique it was almost as though one was accused of patriotic disloyalty. The Taoiseach was fatally wrong.

A United Kingdom commentator has listed four things a country needs like a hole in the head, namely, a boom based on a property bubble; a boom based on a credit bubble; an economy with excessive dependence on financial services; and a Government on a spending spree. As Minister for Finance, Deputy Cowen gave Ireland all of these with no regard for the consequences so long as it gave his party another election win. He promoted a boom based on a property bubble, a boom based on a credit bubble, an economy with excessive dependence on financial services based on the construction and credit bubbles. He also promoted a Government on a spending spree. I was in the shed built by the former Minister, Mr. Charlie McCreevy, in Punchestown for the count for the European elections. It is a lovely shed and, as sheds go, I was very impressed.

See this speech in context