Michael Colreavy (Sligo-North Leitrim, Sinn Fein)

I agree that Ireland should be at the heart of Europe, but we must do so by being assertive and independent and fighting our corner for the people of this State. Ratifying this treaty, on the other hand, will lead only to further hardship. It will oblige the State to achieve a structural deficit of 0.5% when the current programme with the troika runs out in 2015. This will require a further €6 billion in expenditure cuts, which will affect hospitals, schools and transport. It also means that any talk of a future jobs stimulus is nonsense, a false hope. Instead we will sink further and further into economic depression. The austerity treaty will tie our hands behind our back when it comes to making the tough decisions that will have to be made. Our scope to make those decisions will be severely limited.

The idea that this treaty will solve all our economic woes is fanciful.

See this speech in context