Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)

There has been considerable talk about failed ideologies and so forth, which is fair enough. However, I urge some of the Deputies who have made these points to examine the roots of the global crisis we are facing. This crisis was created by a culture of deregulation and free markets gone wild with no accountability to the people. The genesis of the ideology came in the era of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, and the devastation they created is incalculable. Twinned with deregulation and free market economics was privatisation. Whenever powerful countries, be it the United States or the power blocs in the European Union, engage in trade agreements with developing countries, one of the things they have done in return for the money they have lent is ensure the country's vital public services have been privatised. In one country, Bolivia, the people rebelled and turned that around and inspired people in other countries throughout the developing world. The Deputies opposite should do some research on that.

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