Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the calling of these by-elections. I have no doubt that they will mark another wake-up call for a Government which is more and more out of touch with the reality faced everyday by families throughout this country. From its first moments in office, this has been a Government obsessed with putting spin ahead of substance. Fundamental election promises were abandoned overnight and it began a permanent public relations campaign. It is almost three years since the Taoiseach went on the airwaves to declare that his Government had saved us all. It is even longer since the Labour Party started making speeches about how it was delivering fairness in everything.

In the gap between the rhetoric and the reality, what has emerged is a two-tiered recovery – where some are doing well because of the improved international situation but many are being left behind. The only decisive shift in policy which came in with Fine Gael and Labour in 2011 was a shift to more regressive policies. They are policies which have hit struggling families and communities the hardest, policies which have piled up charge upon charge with no consideration for the ability to pay and

policies which have undermined services and brought chaos to too many vital sectors. Every single independent study, national or international, has confirmed that the more difficulty a person has in paying their bills, the harder this Government has hit them.

Yesterday, we had what may be the 50th front-page headline of the year proclaiming that relief is on the way for hard-pressed families. This was greeted with weary derision throughout the country. With the property tax, water charges and other bills landing in their homes, hard-pressed families know that this is nothing but an exercise in trying to take them for fools. In Roscommon-South Leitrim and Dublin South West, we have communities which have felt the impact of Government policies even more than others. In 2011, these constituencies believed Fine Gael and Labour's promises and gave them seven out of a possible nine seats. Instead of getting the democratic revolution or the long list of actions they were promised, they got a record of neglect locally combined with national policies which have hit them disproportionately.

In these by-elections, Fianna Fáil is fielding two first-class candidates - Councillor Ivan Connaughton and Councillor John Lahart - who will offer a different approach. Rooted in their communities, they share a commitment to standing against deeply unfair Government policies, standing up for essential local services and being strong advocates for their communities and regions. In the past few weeks, I have been able to visit many parts of both constituencies. I am very grateful for the warm welcome which I have received and the time which people have been willing to spend with me talking about the issues which concern them.

I hope the Taoiseach and his Ministers will find the time to do more than a few photo opportunities during these elections because if they do, they will find that their complacent picture of the economy and of the impact of their policies is detached from reality. In Roscommon-South Leitrim, people are already being bombarded with Government material claiming to have delivered all sorts of progress. The facts show a part of the country that has been particularly badly hit by a combination of neglect and damaging policies. I have been on the doorsteps with Ivan Connaughton across Leitrim and Roscommon. People feel neglected. They feel this Government has left them behind. That is the genuine view on the ground in these areas - whether it is the paucity of IDA visits, the lack of broadband capability or the lack of an overall vision for rural Ireland in those counties. That is their sense of it.

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