Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I wish to address what has been a significant burst of incoherence from the Government over the past number of days and weeks. We have been bombarded with different messages from various Ministers on very fundamental issues. The comments of the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Varadkar, on the need to defer public sector increments and the need for compulsory redundancies in the public sector, contrast very sharply with the comments of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Brendan Howlin, on how the Croke Park agreement was working and which he articulated clearly.

I refer to yesterday's leak to The Irish Times of correspondence between the Minister, Deputy Howlin and the Minister for Health, Deputy James Reilly, in which the Minister, Deputy Howlin, urged the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly, to take immediate action on the €200 million overrun in the health service. He wants the Minister to, "personally engage", in the situation and to endeavour to manage it better. He proclaimed to have serious concerns about activities in the Department of Health.

I refer also to the refusal of other Ministers to rule out income tax hikes or welfare cuts, as in the Minister, Deputy Rabbitte's, no red lines for the budget. There was also today's rushed press conference, which was clearly organised to try to deflect from the incoherence and mixed messages of the Government but, from the early responses to that, it appears to have only added to the mess and the lack of direction and clarity. That was in respect of the personal insolvency Bill.

All of this has caused surprise. Only last May the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, said the economy was doing much better this year than last year, and all the announcements were that revenue was ahead of Exchequer targets and so forth. I have two fundamental questions for the Taoiseach. Will the Croke Park agreement be honoured by the Government, "Yes" or "No"? Does the Taoiseach agree with the Minister for Public Enterprise and Reform that the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly, must personally engage and take immediate action on the overspend in the Department of Health? How does the Government plan to protect front line services in the health sector to the end of the year?

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