Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)

I would also like to congratulate Francois Hollande. The message is not who was elected but that citizens spoke and in France and Greece, and in local elections in Italy, Germany and Britain, they rejected austerity. This referendum on 31 May allows Irish citizens - the Taoiseach did not want a referendum - an opportunity to join the growing Europe-wide movement to see investment in jobs and growth. A strong "No" vote will see this goes beyond rhetoric. Austerity is not working. We have had five austerity budgets under Fianna Fáil and the current Government, with the social consequences for citizens becoming worse and worse, with half a million unemployed and tens of thousands emigrating, families unable to pay bills and poverty increasing.

The Taoiseach will recall that before every EU summit, Sinn Féin urged him to ensure growth and jobs were at the heart of any agreement. The Taoiseach rejected this sensible approach and repeatedly refused to seek a write-down of the private banking debt. Now with the tide of popular opinion demanding jobs and growth across the EU, this Government has suddenly discovered a rhetorical sense of these policies. Citizens will not be fooled by this or by lip-service to it. Will the Taoiseach take this opportunity to set the record straight and admit austerity does not work and that we need to get people back to work?

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