Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

Today is a sad day for this State. It is a sad day for those families who waited anxiously to hear what the Minister had to say and who will be obliged to cope with the realities of it. It is a sad day for the economy. The Government has chosen to compound a crisis by following a policy set down by its predecessors in Fianna Fáil, a policy that has failed.

It is also a sad day for the Labour Party. It promised to protect the vulnerable and low paid. It promised fairness.

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