Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I do not have any apology to make for my role in the previous election campaign or my conduct in this House, both as an Opposition spokesperson or as a Minister in previous Governments. None of the parties, including the Labour Party, secured a majority in the previous election. We had a national crisis two and a half years ago. In functioning democracies, at least those whose survival is not under threat and which have not lost their economic sovereignty, the largest party after an election usually enters government, with or without allies, and the second largest party usually leads the Opposition.

The legacy of the previous Government was the collapse that started with the Donegal by-election, which Deputy McConalogue will remember well, and continued until March 2009, during which time we experienced three months of paralysis, chaos and despair. Following the general election, Fine Gael and the Labour Party decided to form a Government and negotiated a programme for Government. The programme, which secured the overwhelming support of the House in a vote, is the mandate that I, as Minister for Education and Skills, am implementing to the best of my ability.

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