Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have a good memory and I recall. Unlike some members of the Deputy's party opposite, I have a very good memory of everything in which I was involved in the past. I remember the day of the Haddington Road agreement. I remember the Deputy opposite standing on the plinth decrying the agreement, sight unseen.

It had not yet been published and the Deputy was against it because that is the default position of her party. It did not matter what was in the agreement. The Deputy was against it before the text became available or any worker had been asked to cast a vote on it.

The Haddington Road agreement remains an important part of the painful and difficult adjustment that will give a future to all workers and ensure we have affordable public services. We could have embarked on a different path. The Deputy's party wanted to send the troika packing and keep their money. We would not have any public services or an economy if that course of action had been followed. People will remember that.

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