Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

Having regard to current economic circumstances, did the people who made the ultimate decision know some of their colleagues were out the previous week encouraging others to make applications? If that is the case, one side of the Department does not know what the other is doing. Does that not make manifest our assertion that the Department is essentially dysfunctional? If the Minister of State knew in October that there would be no money available, why did he allow people to go around looking for others to participate in the scheme and then, within days, send a letter from another section in the Department to them stating there was no money available?

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