Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)

I am delighted to contribute on this motion. I thank the United Left Alliance, ULA, and the Technical Group for tabling this motion and for giving such serious consideration to the many flagrant violations as well as for making positive suggestions.

There are many good plasterers, plumbers and ground work contractors, sole traders and decent people who do and have always done their jobs right. That was their raison d'être. If a family member of any Deputy does a job, he or she depends on his or her good name and reputation, which usually sees that person through. However, the situation was hijacked. That the Government, having been in office for 16 months, is blaming the last one without even considering this matter is a cop out, just as we saw with the legislation on lobbyists, which has been long-fingered. I see no sign of it. We are promised everything, but the problem lies with the lobbying system. It got us into the madness of the Celtic tiger. Ordinary decent families set up their homes. Many took out huge mortgages, employed architects and engineers to design their houses, submitted the work for planning permission, received the permission, paid planning fees and development charges and wound up with a bad product because of cowboy builders and a lack of regulations, standards and inspections. People were bullied off sites. The situation was outrageous. There was legislation to stop it, but we still face a mess. Priory Hall and the pyrite cases have been mentioned, but there are Priory Halls up and down the country on a smaller scale. People have been abandoned. They are trying to repay mortgages. As we saw this morning, not one of the 100 independent assessors for people in mortgage distress had been appointed. We are bailing out the banks and the big developers, many of whom are working for NAMA. The entire situation is a disgrace. The banks are not giving a shilling to anyone and nothing is being done about this. People are just rubbing their hands. What did the Taoiseach do? As with the Jim Reeves song, it is a case of "Put your sweet lips a little closer to the phone" when the Taoiseach dials A for Angela. She dials NB - Nice Boy - for him and gives him a pat on the back for passing the referendum and doing what he is told. The situation is a mess and people are aghast that the House is letting it continue.

I compliment two planning officers in south County Tipperary, Mr. Simon Howe and Mr. Alan Walsh. They are doing their best and are often nearly threatened with being kicked and thrown into the river when they visit some sites. Cowboys besmirched the good name of decent trades people and left us in an undignified mess. The big builders got greedy and went to the tents. They are still going to Punchestown and Leopardstown. There might not be any tent, but the Fine Gael Party is happy to sup with them. Lobbying is still happening there and I see no sign of it changing. This is not a personal attack on the Ministers of State, but it is happening and members of that party know it.

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