Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Tá an Rialtas seo ag dul trí ghéarchéim mhór agus tá a chumhacht caillte aige anois. Tá na fáthanna leis seo an-soiléir. Bhris páirtithe an Rialtais gach gealltanas a rinne siad roimh an olltoghchán deireanach.

Sinn Féin tabled a motion of no confidence in the Taoiseach to be debated in tandem with tomorrow's right-to-water demonstration, as is our entitlement. However, the Government was determined at all costs to stop that. A Government that is so frightened at the mere prospect of debating an Opposition motion is not fit to lead this State through the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

The distance between the Taoiseach's election rhetoric and the reality of this Fine Gael-Labour Government did not begin this week or last. It is over two years since the Taoiseach and Tánaiste of the day termed as a “seismic shift” and a “game changer” the Eurogroup commitment in June 2012 to separate banking and sovereign debt. What has the Government done about that since? It has failed to convince any of our European partners that Ireland deserved retrospective recapitalisation. The truth is the Government has not even made the effort. It is all spin and no substance.

We saw how Labour and Fine Gael mishandled the GSOC affair, and the whistleblower controversy around Garda corruption which culminated in the firing of the former Garda Commissioner, Mr. Martin Callinan, and the resignation of the then Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter.

The local and European elections last May sent a very clear message from the citizens to the Government to change direction. However, in what has become the hallmark of Labour and Fine Gael, they refused to listen. The former Tánaiste and leader of the Labour Party was sacrificed but nothing else changed. Since the summer, the Government has been plunged into yet another series of controversies. We had the McNulty-gate affair, which showed a clear insight into the Government's shameful attitude to the arts and its offensive sleeveen attitude to State boards. Then there was the complete rejection of Labour and Fine Gael by the electorates of Dublin South-West and Roscommon-Leitrim South. The Government also lost its Seanad majority.

The overriding theme has been the pursuit of a deeply unfair economic policy, which has imposed brutal and destructive austerity measures on struggling families and vulnerable citizens. The Government’s budgets have been among the most regressive the State has ever seen. Budget 2015 is the fourth regressive budget in a row. It widened the rich-poor gap and deepened inequality. For God’s sake, what is the point of Labour if it does not uphold equality? Budget 2015 represented an opportunity to give citizens a break. Instead they got water charges, property tax and a cut to the top rate of tax, rewarding a wealthy minority.

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