Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)

I spent part of today writing a speech for tonight but I will forgo it because of a number of e-mails I received this morning from people in distress, one of which was partially read out by Deputy John O'Mahony, but he left out the most alarming and painful part of it, which I wish to read into the record:

I have been thinking more and more in the last few days that my children would have a much better chance of life without me. I have provisions made for them in my will that would at least see them grow up in a warm house with food on the table and a chance to be educated properly. I lost my own mother when I was ten years old and I never thought that I would be wishing away my own life to make a better one for my own children. But the thought of them growing up in poverty is just too much to bear. I simply do not have the money to put oil in the tank I have run out of and being on €70 less well-off per week will mean that the only place I can cut back is on food. I beg anyone who cares enough or is bothered enough to actually read my email to please, please, please reconsider the proposed cuts. If you don't maybe some day you will hear my name and feel a bit of regret that you could have helped save someone's life and have two grown-up children with their mother who adores and loves them, loves them enough that she sacrificed her own life to give them a better life.

That is one email. The second email is as follows:

I am a married mum of four children writing in extreme distress at the proposed changes to the means testing of the family income supplement. I am a mum of four kids aged three, seven, nine and eleven. Our seven year old has classic autism with lots of problems. Our youngest, who is three, is being assessed for autism and according to his medical team most likely has autism too. At the moment our family, being on low income as my husband is our sole earner - and we receive FIS - I am in receipt of carer's allowance for my seven year old son. Now with the new criteria for FIS the carer's allowance I receive for my son will be taken as means in assessment for FIS, which means in effect we will lose our FIS payments at our next renewal date under the new means testing scheme.

In effect, our weekly income is down 15%. It means instead of just managing as we are now, we will be struggling even more, not for luxuries mind, I mean basic food on the table, bills etc. for heat and electricity. This cut was not even announced. It was sneaked in the back door and is pretty major for families. It has been an attack on the vulnerable and the weak, those who can't shout. I am trying to stay strong as I type and write this email but I do not know if I can. I really am at the end of my tether, yet again reduced to tears. I am sick of crying, sick of having to fight for every little thing. You gain one victory and yet something else comes along and pulls the rug from under your feet in case we are getting any idea that things would be okay.

That is just two of the emails I received. When I went into electoral politics I did so with the belief that we could make a difference and change things. I have been a socialist all my life and along with others who pronounce that they are socialists I believe that we could do something for the people most in need.

We could do something for the people who are on the breadline and who have been discriminated against by the system and the State. I believe that is possible. I believe people who espouse the politics of James Connolly will defend what he stood for, the working class. I wanted to believe that when the Labour Party went into Government it would espouse the principles of James Connolly and defend the working class, the poor and the people who have written these e-mails. Unfortunately, Labour has again betrayed the people most in need. They have succumbed to the bondholders, bankers and developers. They sit on the Government side of the House, when the people who sat there previously brought the country to its knees, and do the very same.

Shame has been brought on this House by people who said they would do good for people but, when they got into Government, turned their backs on them. They have brought shame to the electoral system. Those of us on this side of the House who espouse the politics of socialism will stand by the working class and the poor, not in order to gain privilege or a ministerial position but to defend them. The poor people of this country never needed leadership more than they do now. We will not be found wanting in that regard.

See this speech in context