Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There is a chasm between what this Government thinks is happening and the reality in our society. What the Tánaiste and the Taoiseach said earlier is so different from the reality. Ireland has lost more jobs in the last four years than any other Western society since the Great Depression. More than 87,000 people have emigrated in the last year, the highest figure since the 1800s and a third of a million have emigrated in the last four years. There has been a net reduction of 20,000 people working in this State since this Government came into office and year on year, every single growth projection made by the Government is reduced in hindsight. The Government has said that we take delight in what is happening but we take no delight in the fact that our families and friends are being pushed into poverty, into unemployment and into emigration. However, we would take delight in roll-over Gilmore standing up for his pre-election manifesto. We would take delight in the Government doing the job it was elected to do and would delight in it leaving office if it does not do that job.

Having listened to the earlier speeches, one would expect that the Irish people would be glad to see the Government doing what it is doing. In that context, I will read a letter from a constituent, addressed to Fine Gael and Labour Party TDs and copied to me. The writer says:

I would like you to know that I, for one, am grateful to your party. Grateful for the chance you have given me to learn to value every penny I haven't got in my battered old purse. I am grateful to be unemployed, as it has given me the opportunity to rear my own children and rejoice in their brilliance. I am so grateful for you as you are showing our young people what not to do when they gain power. I am grateful that we have no oil to heat our bedrooms as it draws us, as a family, around the open fire and improves communication among us. I am grateful for the day that we ran out of bread and had no money to buy any because it gave me an opportunity to learn to bake my own.


I am grateful that the children's allowance is cut by €30 for my family every month as it will motivate me to find further night-time work. And hey, let's not forget to be grateful for the property tax, because it reminds me that I am so so lucky to have a house which will give my son, who has a disability, a roof over his head long after I'm gone, so he won't be a burden on the State. I am also grateful for what's left of the respite grant, as it will pay for the property tax, not like last year, when it paid for a break for us all. I am grateful for my car, as it helps me get my son to all his hospital appointments and for the hundred euros that I conjure out of thin air every week, as that is what it now costs me to keep my car on the road. I am delighted that, despite my lack of employment, I am able to contribute to the economy by paying the Government 57 cent for every euro I put in my petrol tank as I now feel I am more than paying my way. I am grateful that I had enough petrol in my tank on Monday night to drive my son an hour's drive to casualty when he fell for the seventh time that day and for the lovely nurse and doctor who, despite their long shift and awful working conditions, were able to staple him back together. I am also grateful to our local mechanic who, luckily, fixed my car only that morning and is letting me pay in instalments.


I am grateful that my home support hours, which were sanctioned as necessary by every social worker that assessed us are now all gone, because if I was angry about it it would blacken my heart and make me bitter. I am grateful to my parents who are very proud to have reared an honest girl and I can look them in the eye, knowing I am true to my word and haven't lied to get to where I am today. I am glad that I gave your party a vote at the last election, as now I am very clear on who not to vote for at the next one and clarity can only be a good thing. Finally, it would be helpful if you could think about how the cuts your party has designed are going to impact on the vulnerable people of our society because I can't guarantee that I will be standing next year if something isn't reversed and how much do you think the collapse of all the carers in Ireland will cost the State?

Kind regards,

Pauline,

Oldcastle, County Meath.

How will the Government putting its hand into this woman's near-empty pocket cure Ireland's debt crisis while at the same time it stuffs the pockets of the bondholders with billions of our euro?

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