Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)

Let us not mislead people on this issue. Last week and each week before that we paid between €10 million and €12 million to these bondholders. The Taoiseach is misleading people - and I use that word advisedly - as is the Minister for Health in regard to hospital services, election commitments - which are personal, because all politics is personal - and also in terms of the commitments given in the programme for Government. The Minister for Social Protection is now telling us that welfare payments will be cut, which will affect the most vulnerable in this society. There are many people who never saw themselves as vulnerable, whether economically or in terms of their broad access to public services. There are many people paying for this crisis in a real way.

The Taoiseach is sincere in what he is trying to do, but he is in breach of every single commitment he made on all of the issues to which I referred.

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