Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)

We live in extraordinarily difficult economic times. We now require clear political thinking and difficult decisions to restore economic sovereignty, fix the banking system and get public finances under control. It is not long ago that this country was in a position similar to where Greece is now. At that time we had utter political chaos on top of economic instability, and for the last weeks of the previous Administration, we were a rudderless ship that was frightening to behold. In the 2011 election, everybody knew the state of the country's economic fortunes and was aware of the difficult decisions required. Although such issues will be difficult, I hope they will be fair.

We can consider a number of measures taken up to now. The Government has restored the minimum wage, introducing a baseline earning per hour for every man, woman and young adult in the country. It has removed 330,000 people from having to pay the universal social charge, increased mortgage interest relief and reconstructed joint labour committees following a ruling by the superior courts of this land. The Government maintained basic rates of social welfare and income tax levels in the first budget. It also managed to renegotiate two aspects of the deal with the troika, namely, the terms of the bailout and the promissory notes. In the 15 or 16 months this Government has been in office, it has taken several measures of note to protect the lower paid and those who felt the brunt of the economic collapse in this country.

Nobody wants to introduce a tax but this is in the memorandum of understanding. We are required to do so by the troika which is paying our bills. It should be borne in mind we are borrowing millions every month to fund essential public services, and that is before we even consider banking debt. That is the prison from which this Government is viewing the economic position, and its hands are therefore tied. None the less, I outlined a number of areas where it has protected the most vulnerable people.

It is incumbent on every Member in this House and each political grouping to produce proactive and constructive policies that could help us get out of the mess we are in. I congratulate Sinn Féin on having the brass neck to produce this Bill. In the North the party is working with the DUP to bring about savage austerity, and we can compare that with its utterances here about a Government that is proactive in working to get us out of the hole we are in. It is sheer hypocrisy. This is a €100 household charge. The time in the House this evening would be better spent debating a full and equitable property tax and making proposals which the Government can use.

The late Jim Kemmy always said the moral high ground was a lonely place and since February last year we have seen Sinn Féin take the moral high ground on one issue after another. A number of motions were passed at its recent conference. Motion No. 66 read: "This Ard Fheis calls on the Ard Chomhairle to draw up strict guidelines for all Sinn Féin public representatives with regard to the use of taxpayers money and the drawing down of expenses to ensure consistency of conduct across the party and maintain our credibility with the public". Reading this morning'sedition of the Irish Independent for five minutes would put paid to that lie. Misappropriating taxpayers' money to fund a political operation flies in the face of this motion. It is utter hypocrisy. About £500,000 has been drawn down from the British Exchequer to fund a political operation in this country, while maintaining an abstentionist policy at Westminster. This smacks of hypocrisy and plays to people's fears, taking advantage of the misery they are experiencing. When people get up in the morning and wonder about the next utility bill or mortgage payment and then look at the difficult decisions being made by the Government, what do they see when they look at the Opposition? The answer is political hypocrisy and pious political platitudes. Sinn Féin does nothing but debase the reputation of politics. That is why politics has been besmirched to such a level because of sheer political cynicism at huge cost to the ordinary hard-pressed individual and at greater cost to the reputation of the body politic.

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