Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

We all know our country has serious economic difficulties, but before I ask my question of the Taoiseach, I am sure the House will join me in expressing the condolences and sympathy of everybody here on the unspeakable grief inflicted on two communities in Ballycotton and Newcastle West. These are tragedies in respect of which words are not adequate.

We have been told by the Taoiseach and members of his Government on more than one occasion that the bank bailout, for which the taxpayer has paid, was the cheapest, most effective and best. We were told time and again that no outside help was needed and that our country could manage its way out of our difficulties. We had the spectre of not one but two Cabinet Ministers telling us that discussions and talks about technicalities and conditions at European level were fiction. The Taoiseach knew nothing about it and no Minister knew anything about it; the line was that if it was going on they had not heard about it.

This morning I heard the Minister for Finance say that where assistance might be forthcoming from Europe it is important that those involved in that assistance should be given the full facts. This House was never given the full facts nor were the people. Now we are told it is all about structural deficiencies in the banking system despite the fact that time and again the Government claimed everything was now fine. We heard about green shoots, coming out of the tunnel, being on the way up and on the way back, and that what was good for Fianna Fáil was good for the country, but we now know the truth. The white flag has been raised and the towel has been thrown in. Like the prowler waves off the west coast-----

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