Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

This is not agreed. Deputy Gilmore and others made the point about the Social Welfare Bill 2009, either before or after the budget debate concluded yesterday, that this is a Bill of real significance in which gross unfairness could have been avoided. In this Bill, the Government proposes to take €8.60 a week off a full-time carer looking after an Alzheimer's patent while allowing people to walk away with significant golden handshakes, which leave them with pensions of more than €100,000 without any cut. These are examples of gross unfairness. I do not accept that what the Taoiseach said about two-day debates in respect of social welfare should apply in this case.

I believe the Bill can be debated today but it should not be concluded tomorrow. We should debate it again on Tuesday or Wednesday when people have had time to consider the implications and the circumstances that will arise inevitably for household budgets in thousands of cases as a result of the Government yesterday putting through a budget to cut elements of social welfare. Fine Gael produced an alternative to the Government's €4 billion programme, which would have protected the vulnerable, carers, the disabled, the blind, pensioners and children while still achieving €4 billion in cuts.

See this speech in context