Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)

I am quite happy that Deputies can correct the record at any time when they stand up to deliberate here this evening.

We lost competitiveness during the sustained period of an economic boom. That is an accepted fact. We paid ourselves increased wages, which undermined our competitiveness vis-À-vis our European counterparts and further afield. There was a property bubble, but I did not see anyone on either side of the House ever say that the construction industry would bring this country to its knees.

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