Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Workers and Unemployed Action Group)

There are a number of things we know. The first is that there is now, if we did not know previously, a national and Europe-wide economic and social emergency. We know that the behaviour and treachery of the previous Fianna Fáil-Green Party Government has led to huge attacks on lower-income families and poor people generally in this State, and we know now that through the EU-IMF deal we have lost our sovereignty and, to a large extent, our independence. We know the current Government has embraced the deal negotiated by the previous Government and is imposing the same attacks and austerity on low and middle income families and the unemployed. We also know the policy of austerity has not worked and is not working, and that it is leading to major job losses throughout the country. In Clonmel, 125 jobs were lost yesterday, and our Army barracks and acute psychiatric unit are under threat. That is happening right around the country. Austerity is simply not working. If one goes down the high street of any town in the country one finds shop units vacant and more closing by the day. This is because people simply do not have money in their pockets. Something like €14 billion has been taken out of the pockets of ordinary people by the previous Government and by this Government, and the result is 450,000 unemployed.

Surely it is time we recognised the folly of what has been going on and introduced a stimulus to the economy. Surely it is time wealthy people in this country and throughout the EU paid their fair share, which they are not doing. There is no asset tax and no wealth tax in this country, despite their existence in many other EU countries and many states in the USA. The wealthiest 5% of people in this country have assets worth around €250 billion, and these must be taxed, because we cannot have a situation in which ordinary people are absolutely fleeced while those who are hugely wealthy get away scot free. That is the message for the European Council meeting on 23 October.

See this speech in context