Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I refer to what was maintained in the budget. Despite the economic meltdown we inherited and the necessary programme of recovery we are in, the core rate of State pensions has been maintained in full; free travel has been maintained in full; the fuel allowance has been maintained in full; the living alone allowance has been maintained in full; the television licence has been maintained in full; the free electricity and gas allowance and over 80 allowance has been maintained in full; and the extra payment for caring for more than one person is retained and the carer's allowance and half rate carer's allowance has been protected.

Returning to the key point being discussed, the medical cards, as a result of budget 2014, 85% of those over 70 years of age in our population will still retain their medical card and only those with incomes of more than €500 per week for a single person or €900 per week for a couple will continue to receive GP visit cards. Even after all these changes, 97% of persons over 70 will still have access to a free GP card.

I listened to Deputy Willie O'Dea earlier who was a Minister on many occasions. He is doing a lot of name-checking of Government politicians lately but what he fails to recognise is the consequence of cause and effect. In terms of a name-check, perhaps somebody should create a Twitter account called Micheál Martian, the profile of which would be "Just landed on earth. Take me to your leader, and they made me leader of the Opposition". We would be reading Tweets such as: "Came into the House today and spoke about the housing crisis - how did that happen? Came into the House today and spoke about the banking crisis - how did that happen? Came into the House today to talk about the HSE - whose brainwave was that?" These are the legacies Fianna Fáil has given us and that we are correcting.

I will conclude on this point. What this Government is doing is creating a sustainable future not based upon the boom and bust type of politics of Fianna Fáil. We are not just engaged in the present for electoral opportunity. We are getting this country back on its feet. We are making the right decisions, and we are not being self-righteous about it.

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